


SoulBond

by DonKoogrr



Category: Dreaming of Sunshine, Naruto
Genre: Aftermath of Torture, Canon is no longer applicable, DOS by SilverQueen, Forum Fic, Gen, Mikako is Madara's baby sister, Reincarnation, Shikako is Mikako, Shikako reborn in Warring Era, Sort Of, Soulmates, Time Travel, Torture, Where did all these OCs come from?
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-03-03
Updated: 2018-03-31
Packaged: 2019-03-26 08:54:21
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 24
Words: 42,137
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/13854342
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/DonKoogrr/pseuds/DonKoogrr
Summary: A story born from the DoS Soulmates forum. It began with Laural and MathisMagic's 'Matching Scars' fics and snowballed from there.Basically: In a world where a wound on one soulmate will be matched on the other, how did Tobirama get his tattoos?





	1. Part 1

**Author's Note:**

> The Matching Scars ficlet series can be found on this Index Page: https://www.fanfiction.net/topic/180237/141339722/2/Index-page#154796006

SoulBound

A Matching Scars 'verse recursive fanfiction

In which Jashin is Sir Not-Appearing-in-This-Fic and no one is happy

(This sounds wooden and awkward as all Hell but eh we all start somewhere. If it inspires anyone else typing this out will be worth it.)

\-----

When Madara was younger and had only just broken his friendship with Hashirama, he traveled with a group of several clansmen to restock an Uchiha base hidden a day's journey from the border of the Land of Hot Springs. It was an unusual mission for him, as he was being trained primarily as a front-line fighter, but Tajima had decided that his eldest (surviving) son needed to be reminded exactly which clan he belonged to. It was a child's mission and therefore all the more humiliating for him.

He learned a lesson there, though. _One he's not sure he's grateful for now_.

The body he and his distant Uncle had found was...gruesome. Three stripes tattooed on the face ~~what remained of it~~ was only the beginning ( _he can't bear to think of the rest now_ ) of the clear torture that had occurred ~~broken arms raised in the air like a mockery of worship~~. Madara had seen cruelty before, but only on a battlefield between warriors. Not staked in a clearing ~~lips dyed black open mouthed horror~~ for all to see. This thing...is was not _right_. It had felt like it wasn't really a part of reality, though his Sharingan confirmed that it was no genjutsu. And yet if he looked at it for too long, it felt as if something was staring back.

Madara shuddered. ( _Even now, the memory of wrongness brings a cold weight to his gut_ )

His Uncle Jiro was silent as he inspected both the corpse and the surrounding area. After what seemed like an eternity, the scarred man turned to Madara and motioned him to come closer. He obeyed. Reluctantly.

"This is something you're going to need to know about." Jiro had set his hand on Madara's shoulder, as if to ground the both of them.

"There's a group in Hot Springs..." He hesitated before continuing "There's a group in Hot Springs that has the ability to tell whether a person has a soulbond or not. They're not a clan, not really. No one's sure how they do it and trying to get close enough to find out..."

He trailed off again. The chill Madara felt had nothing to do with the clouds slowly obscuring the sun. His uncle shook himself minutely.

"They worship some sort of god. Jashin. They believe this 'god' gave people soulbonds. Something about the matching wounds and glorifying pain. When they find someone with a soulbond."

He'd gestured to the woman's face. ~~red tattoos like open gashes tear tracks in the grime~~

"They start with the tattoos. Three lines. It has something to do with their holy symbol. They give it a day after that before they start in on their victim, supposedly to let the soulmate know they're about to be sacrificed. So they can be 'honored'." The word is sneered.

Madara had interrupted him, glad to pay attention to anything else but the travesty before them "If we know about them, about what they do, why haven't we stopped them?! That...What they're doing...They should all die!"

Jiro blinked as in the idea was incomprehensible before he looked back to the body. The body that was suddenly much closer to them. When had they gotten so close to it? _He still can't recall, all these years later. Even with the Sharingan active, he doesn't know_. Uncle Jiro grabbed him around the waist and leapt away as if he expected the dead woman to reach out to them. Once more at a safer distance, he is set down. Jiro turned abruptly from the clearing, back toward the hidden base. Madara had to scramble to keep up with his pace, quietly grateful of the distance they were putting between them and... _that_.

"Our Clan has been hired to wipe them out before. It never sticks. There's always some new group that pops up after a decade or so. It's always a well-paid mission, too. Usually after some Noble's favorite wife or kid winds up screaming themselves to death. Otherwise, it's not our problem, just a danger to be aware of."

Madara had felt ill, but had kept quiet. He was still being monitored after what had happened with the Senju. Just before they rejoined the rest of their group (before they dismantle the base due to the potential risk), Jiro had stopped him again and made him meet his uncle's slowly spinning Sharingan.

"Madara. If ever you know someone who's soulbond is being tattooed like that...if you have any shred of fondness for them you will _slice their throat immediately_. It would be kinder, than to let them suffer what would come next."

\-----

" _Slice their throat immediately._ "

Jiro has been dead for years, but his words resonate in Madara's head as he mentally plans the quickest route to the border of the Land of Hot Springs. Two days ago Mikako's ~~so small too small~~ wrists and legs had become red and chafed and she complained of a gnawing hunger no matter how much she ate. Bruises appeared with frightening regularity. The cold terror of knowing that her soulmate ~~weak, unworthy, bastard~~ was likely held captive was nothing compared to the utter horror Madara had felt when the first red line had slowly appeared on her chin. Not a real tattoo, just pain and swelling from the needles, but what it _meant-_

They had a day to make it to the border and find the cult's current base. It was a two day journey, but they'd been preparing for a rescue mission since Mikako had first reported her new injuries.

He and Izuna practically fly out of the Uchiha Compound, their hand-picked squad not far behind them.

They'd make it in time.

_They had to._


	2. Part 2

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> In which Tobirama is neither happy nor on the good drugs.
> 
> (Ah, well. It's been so long since I wrote non-work-related stuff, it's awfully ego-boosting to hear I've still got some talent. Y'all spoil me. Let's see if you're still of the same opinion after this chapter.)
> 
> (Warnings for torture and induced vomiting)

**The First Day**

Tobirama wakes in darkness, the familiar pain of a deep bruise blossoming over his belly. ' _A trap,_ ' he remembers even as he tests the give of the ropes binding his wrists and ankles, ' _an ambush. Not a specific one, though._ ' And that's something, at least. The Senju's information gatherers had obviously screwed up _somewhere_ , since they had apparently missed the latest resurgence of Jashinists, but they hadn't done so badly as to leak information about the assassination Tobirama had been returning from.

The darkness is no deeper when he closes his eyes. Planning an overhaul of the Clan's intelligence system could wait until he actually got back. Tobirama stretches his body out as best he can, cataloging his wounds. Nothing crippling or especially difficult to work with. The way his fingers have been separately bound will be an issue, though. The sudden tight stinging sensation on his back tells him the memories of having a chakra suppression tag _sewn between his shoulder blades_ were not the result of a particularly vivid nightmare.

A breath. He's not going to get out of this mess if he can't stop shaking. He waits until his heartbeat steadies before worming his way into a sitting position. Another breath. He bends at the waist and bends his knees until he can catch the rope around his ankles in his teeth. It's an uncomfortable position and not one he can hold for too long before he needs to breath again, but it's a start.

The rope tastes horrible. He wonders how long he's been here. It's cold in this darkness, and he absently wishes that his captors hadn't taken his clothes.

\-----

Tobirama is standing, trying to work the pins and needles sensation out of his feet when he hears the sound of a heavy door being opened. He waits in the all-consuming darkness. Voices. Footsteps. They are powerful, but they are not truly ninja. There's a key in a lock, a squeal from rusty hinges, a sliver of light ~~sobrightit'sblinding~~ , and Tobirama moves.

They don't expect the controlled charge and he shoulder-checks the larger man into the wall. Turning on his heel, the Senju kicks to other more by instinct than anything else ~~sobrightburningbright~~ and feels the satisfying sensation of a throat being crushed under his foot. The momentum turns him toward the first man who's just now recovering, and-

There's a third man, grabbing Tobirama by the neck like an errant kitten. He chokes and kicks out, but his leg is caught by a meaty hand. His eyes adjust to the light just in time to see the cultist he'd been about to finish off snarl angrily as his fist meets Tobirama's bruised ribs. He wheezes, the air forced out of him, and he _can't breath-_

They carry him up a flight as stairs, unconcerned by the dead man they're leaving behind.

\-----

Helplessness is not a feeling Tobirama is entirely familiar with. He's been acquainted with it before, yes, when his brothers ~~were killed~~ died, when his clansmen were too injured for his medical jutsus to save, but when Helplessness tries to visit in the long hours of the nights, Tobirama is driven to create new and better ways to protect his family rather than accept the idea that there is nothing he can do to change his lot.

There is a helplessness now as such he has never known.

The sun is bright and the sky is disturbingly cheerful as he is thoroughly bound to the short altar set up in the middle of a circle drawn in a syrupy black liquid that smells too vile to be blood. A man dressed in a _Horishi's_ robes straddles his chest, legs pinning his head in place. He reaches out to run his hand comfortingly through Tobirama's matted white hair.

"Be joyous, child! Your sacrifice will be a glorious triumph for Jashin! Do not stifle your screams, for they are the feast Our Lord will devour!"

More hands in his hair, his jaw, holding him still and steady as the needle descends.

\-----

**The Second Day**

Tobirama wakes in darkness, cheeks and chin burning, hands and fingers and ankles and thighs bound tighter than before. It seems the cultists don't want a repeat of the day before.

Had it been a day? Time could be flying by or crawling like a snail here in the dark cell. The silence was only broken by his own breath. His heartbeat pounds rhythmically in his chest.

' _I...I'm going to die here._ '

He shifts, trying in vain to find a more comfortable position. It's the first time in his life that he cannot sense the latent chakra in the air. Where once his Sensory skills allowed him the ever-present thrum of _life_ , there is only stillness, as if life had never been anything more than a fever dream.

' _I wonder if Hashirama is looking for me?_ '

A foolish thought. Of course his brother will be searching for him. Eventually. Tobirama knows a clan head cannot drop his responsibilities to seek out one late ninja, even if that ninja was his brother. Eventually he will be missed. It's the finding that is the problem. He hopes his brother won't be the one to find his body.

The idea of his own death wasn't something Tobirama dwelt on. He had a pragmatic view that he would die on the battlefield in service to his family. It wasn't the grandiose notion of a hero's last stand, either. It was simply...statistically the most likely way the event would happen. Until now, anyway. Now, when the darkness claws at his eyes and his breath stutters in his ears and his body trembles without his permission.

He wonders if he should hate his soulmate. He wouldn't have been a target if some nebulous higher power hadn't decided to tie his life to some stranger's. He dismisses the idea. The unknown bondmate had no more say in the situation as Tobirama.

He hopes that someone close to his soulmate realizes what's happening. He hopes they will give them mercy.

\-----

**The Third Day**

Tobirama wakes in darkness.

There is no last-minute save the morning he is scheduled to die. Two cultists enter the cell. The male pulls Tobirama into a sitting position, settling him in his lap as if he were a child. The woman draws near, murmuring a chant that the Senju cannot understand. She pressed a cup to his chapped lips and for a moment Tobirama believes he will have the small mercy of water. The stench registers a moment later. He fights, but the man forces his mouth open and the woman strokes his throat as she pours the cloying, repulsive liquid into his mouth. It _burns_ , stains his teeth and lips an ugly black, and he retches.

The man carries his to the ritual site as his head spins. The viscous mixture curdles in his empty stomach and it feels as if it's traveling to his limbs. He almost misses the fact that the altar is no longer at the middle of the circle. Distantly, he takes note of the contraptions now positioned around the perimeter of the site, but it's so difficult to do so when your blood is boiling your muscles into sludge. ' _His heart is so cruel_ ,' he thinks dizzily, ' _to keep pumping this molten lead through his veins_ '.

Ropes are tied around his arms and ankles, spreading him out so tightly that he is held slightly off the surface of the earth. The coarse ropes are agony on his overheated skin and he _whines_ when another is tightened around his neck. The chanting of the worshipers is only so much noise, too much, he can't hear himself crying out as the ropes nearly pull him apart.

He's choking when they stop. Half-muffled cries he doesn't realize he's making echo loudly in the sudden silence. He can feel his insides rotting already.

An officiant draws near, smiling kindly. She reaches under him and tears the seal off his back.

_Tobirama screams_. Chakra burns at his senses, drowns him in its vibrancy. The world is alive and _it's killing him_. More noise, words and cheers he can't register, and a blade cuts the shape of a triangle through his burning skin, following the line of his ribcage. The cool morning air is freezing him now, even as the boiling oil that is his blood begins to flow.

_Tobirama laughs_. There is a firestorm whipping it's way down the mountain, faster than he's ever felt before. Lightning is tangled along with it and there is only moments before this whole area will be obliterated.

There are _such screams_ when the inferno hits. Tobirama gags at the blood that splashes into his mouth, at the chakra that saturates the air, at the rope that continues to keep him still and vulnerable. He cannot understand what is happening, the world is nothing but screaming color and bright noise and the restraints are gone. There are hands on him, burning hot against his skin (it surprises him that he still has skin. ' _Didn't that melt away already?_ ') and he is turned over. Fingers force their way into his mouth to brush against his throat and-

Tobirama vomits up black bile. He gags at the smell, but the fingers are back, forcing him to empty his stomach again and again, until nothing comes up. He heaves and shudders and the burning is less now. There is a body holding him up and he tries to focus. There is red and black and concerned disgust, but he can't find it in him to care over much. The body gathers him up and leaps away from the still screaming cultists. The body is making noise but Tobirama cannot decipher what it means. A hand cradles the back of his head, trying to gentle the jerking, leaping motions and Tobirama nearly shakes himself apart.

They stop. More bodies, more sounds. Someone tries to push too-bitter chakra into his chest and he adds his own sounds to the din. Unfettered by the ropes, his muscles spasm at random and his head rolls as if it were trying to escape his body. He's still drowning in the chakra and isn't that funny? _He's going to drown in fire_.

A particularly sharp noise from the _redblackfire_ body and suddenly...suddenly the burning chakra is being throttled. Wrapped up and contained and he thinks he might understand some of the noises. _Sensor. Hyper-sensitive. Mikako._ He files them away and tries to enjoy breathing again. There's motion in front of his eyes but he doesn't respond.

_WarmBankedCoals_ picks him up and Tobirama obligingly tries to stop his sporadic movements. He's fairly sure he fails.

They are leaving the _hurtdarkpain_ and Tobirama has never been happier.


	3. Part 3

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> In which transition happens and the Uchiha are not nice people.
> 
> (Thank you to MathisMagic and Laural for letting me pick their brains and play with their toys, that they borrowed from SilverQueen, who borrowed them from Kishimoto, who wasn't using them all that well anyway.)
> 
> (If every author has their own style, mine is run-on sentences and no one can stop me)

The low mountain range separating the Land of Fire from the Land of Hot Springs might as well be a lump of clay for how effectively is slowed the frantic Uchiha force. Madara's sensory skills aren't even needed anymore once the dawn breaks and a blood-red sunrise begins to saturate the sky. The cold terror from his childhood memories is pulsing, drawing him to the small settlement even as his body wants to rebel. Every danger sense is screaming at him to turn away and he knows that his brother and clansmen are fighting the primal compulsion as well.

Mikako's tearful face keeps him going. _He cannot fail now._

The plan is simple by necessity; a smash-and-grab job, where the smash is the cultists and the grab is the _~~bastard~~_ captive who holds the Heart of the Clan hostage and likely doesn't even realize it. _~~Unworthy bastard-~~_!

They can hear cheers and chanting ~~and choked screams underneath~~ when Madara and Izuna leap into the ritual site. The shock on the gathered worshipers is as heady as the satisfaction he has when he beheads the three closest ones in a single swing of his gunbai. Izuna barrels into their numbers, sword flashing and rage covering his normally placid features. Madara keeps his attention to the helpless _~~useless~~_ captive's bleeding chest and the robed man holding the obvious bloody knife.

Somewhere, because it is the Sharingan and _does_ record everything, his mind makes note of the distinctive (if still bloody, swollen, and vaguely blue from lack of oxygen) facial features, but his main concern is the black blood that is flowing from the wound. _~~BlackbloodblacklipsnonononotMikako-~~_!

"What have you done? _Tell Me_!" The words spit from his mouth and the officiant's surprised outrage morphs into twisted glee. The ~~dead~~ man ~~walking~~ gestures with his free hand, waving almost lazily at a ceremonial cup laying next to the bloody corpse Izuna had left of it's holder. His smile only widens as the screams around them grow and the fire jutsu from the arriving Uchiha squad burn the early morning light.

"The Draught of Agony is Jashin's glorious gift to his devoted children; the Blessed Bonded will feel the pain our Lord covets and strengthen the Power of He Who Is-"

The man is only rendered unconscious via genjutsu for now. He likely has information the can use against future resurgences of this so called 'faith', but that can be taken at a later time. A flick of Madara's wrist sends kunai through the ropes suspending the target and he pulls the man to his knees. The poison was obviously taken in orally, so getting it back out is the best he can do until a healer can administer the standard antidote. His eyes scan briefly over the man who had been the bane of his life for years as he does so and he jolts when a familiar red stare registers.

Rage pounds in his chest, nearly overcoming him in that moment. _Senju Tobirama_. His brother's main combatant, Hashirama's surviving brother, _the murderous scum harming his sister-_!

Madara bites the leather of his glove and pulls it off his hand before sticking his fingers down the other man's throat. He tries to focus. The Target needs to be rescued and kept safe for Mikako's sake. Nothing else matters. Dispassionately, Madara watches the stitches on the Senju's back stretch as he heaves until there is nothing more to be emptied. (His mind is drawn to every cut and burn and bruise that ever marred his sister's body and _loathes_ the man now trembling in his arms. He hopes Izuna doesn't try to shoulder any of the blame; he knows his brother wound never intentionally hurt their beloved sister)

Madara sneers as he gathers up the gangly-limbed mess and carries him away from the skirmish to where the healers are waiting. Unseeing eyes stare past his shoulder and he closes his ears to the occasional pained noises muffled into his neck. ' _How amusing_ ,' he thinks, ' _the stone-hearted bastard may have emotions after all_ '. He'd be lying if he claimed he didn't feel a measure of cruel satisfaction when he felt hot tears against his neck.

"You deserve worse, for the pain you've caused her."

There is no answer as Madara reaches his destination and carefully handed over his burden. He notes that the shallow cut on the Senju's chest is now bleeding red rather than black and is already healing. ' _Mikako's still alive_ ' and the sign is a weight off his shoulders. Whatever ceremony the cultists had been performing, they had obviously interrupted it before anything permanent could occur.

\-----

Target now secure and already being carried back to the Uchiha Clan Lands, Madara finds Izuna in the ruins of what had once been the cult leader's dwelling place. (The fight had been a slaughter more than anything. They were lucky, in that regard. If the group had been bigger there might have been an 'immortal' among them.) His brother has already sorted through and executed the few captives and is now skimming over an ostentatious-looking scroll. Their eyes meet and a tenseness falls from Izuna's shoulders. _They made it in time._

"Found anything of note?" Madara hooks his chin over his brother's shoulder to inspect the scroll as well. It's a threadbare excuse to make physical contact, but there isn't a soul around that would begrudge them the small comfort.

"Some. Most of what was spouted was half-mad doctrine and nonsense. The rest might be helpful, but we'd need our specialists to confirm their viability. They burned the Senju's armor and clothes; apparently no one wanted to risk any booby-traps."

The same can't be said of Tobirama's sword, though. Madara can see that Izuna has already laid claim to that particular treasure. He huffs in amusement.

"Do you think Mikako could make more of that if she studies the original? She'd likely enjoy a project like that, now that she's safe."

Izuna stiffens and Madara frowns at the younger man's words.

" _Is_ she safe, though, Brother? I know Tobirama better than any other and he is a viciously clever creature. I have no doubt that he would gladly end himself if it would strike a blow to the Uchiha. If he were to meet Mikako..." he grimaces in distaste "He is also the current Senju heir; if word gets out that we have him, his brother would surely press for his return."

Izuna bows his head, fingers tightening in anger.

"We cannot allow him to leave under any circumstances, Brother. Not if we want Mikako to _be safe._ "

The scroll opens further, revealing the process to create the Draught of Agony. Izuna's voice is quiet and determined.

"The pain of this poison doesn't travel through the soulbond. They made it to exclusively affect the one who drinks it, to 'bring the mind of the honored to a higher plane of anguish.' We could..."

Madara thinks of the Senju's second strongest warrior made weak as a kitten. He recalls easily how pliant and vulnerable the tremor-wracked body had been, even in the arms of a hated enemy.

He remembers the tortured screams of the man who had caused their sister such suffering.

His decision is clear as he meets Izuna's eyes...and smiles.


	4. Part 4

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> In which there is a time skip and Mikako isn't happy.
> 
> (A shorter chapter that is late because life.)
> 
> \-----

Mikako is not the type of person to panic when faced with an unexpected situation. Snap decisions may have been useful in Shikako's life, but here she was Mikako and needed to keep calm and play the long game. She's told herself this many times since her second rebirth. Now should be no different.

Except is _was_.

It's been months since the day Izuna had returned home with the Sword of the Flying Thunder God and hugged her close, telling her that she'd never be in pain from the soulbond again. She'd thanked him appropriately and immediately began to fish for details even as her mind spun at the implications. Her sword. Tobirama's sword. _Soulmates _.__

__She wasn't allowed to meet him, no matter how tearfully she asked or slyly she wheedled. Her ~~overprotective, _frustrating_~~ brothers both insisted that her 'mysterious' soulmate was being kept safe and asleep, so that he couldn't hurt himself._ _

__As if she couldn't sense their lies._ _

__There had been a whisper of giddy malice lacing Izuna's words and a satisfied shadow of vengeance in Madara's eyes. Even now, as she sits in her bedroom and meditates, she can feel a repulsive twist of darkness in their chakras. It's incredibly frustrating. It's _familiar_. Every time she tries to look closer at it, it seems to sense her 'gaze' and hide itself away as if it were alive._ _

__She shivers in Madara's presence, now. She avoids Izuna's smiles._ _

__They don't seem to notice._ _

__Slowly, a pall of despondence and negativity has settled over ~~the Uchiha~~ _her_ clan. She knows the timing can't be a coincidence, but fears that speaking of it might cause more problems than she already has. Konoha _needs_ Tobirama to survive whatever her family if doing to him; the village won't exist if he's kept locked away from his brother and clan. She knows Madara knows this, too, but he doesn't appear to care anymore. The only thing that interests him of late is the putrid potion he makes up once a week and the gaudy scroll that had been recovered from whoever had been holding her soulmate captive. That, too, certainly has something to do with their captive Senju, but she's never been able to follow him after he leaves with it._ _

__'It's a bit like falling into the black...only where there once was an abyss now is aggression.' Mikako shakes her head, breaking her concentration. She stands, smoothing out her kimono before moving to the door. The house that was once her home in this life now makes her uneasy. She'd much rather spend her time outside with the clan children, now. She slips out unnoticed by her brother. He's making the potion again and she finds his expression unnerving._ _

__Distraction is still hard to come by. Reminders of how _off_ things have been are everywhere she looks. Her clansmen's gazes are sharper, their voices more inclined to yelling. There have been more fights between individual Uchiha in these past months than there were in the year preceding them. Animals hunted for food are often brought back alive and cruelly wounded where before they would have been cleanly killed._ _

__Three days ago, Mikako herself had pulled a handful of whiskers from one of the clan cats without even being aware of what she was doing. She'd only snapped out of her daze when Madara had rushed into the room in a panic and thrown the poor cat away from her._ _

__Her hands had been a mess of scratches. Madara had been watching her soulmate when they'd appeared on the man's own hands._ _

__"Mikako!" Startled, she looks up, surprised to find herself so close to the compound's gates instead of with the other children. Izuna is smiling at her, obviously newly returned from his mission. He'd been gone for a week. Again. Another symptom of the sickness currently plaguing her people._ _

__"Have you been waiting for me, little sister?" ' _He looks so happy_ ,' She thinks as she smiles wanly and lifts her arms in the universal signal to be picked up. Izuna sweeps her up immediately, humming some nonsense about how sweet she is. ' _And so do the others he was with. Perhaps time and distance are a factor_.'_ _

__Mikako borrows some impulsiveness from her last life._ _

__"Big brother, can we visit the southern fields before we go home? Mada-nii's been too busy to take me and I wanted to bring you flowers!" Wide eyes, a wobbling pout, and a briefly strange look on Izuna's face have the two of them well on their way a moment later. Mikako chatters absently while she focuses on the conversation she hopes to have. The idea of spilling even _some_ of what she knows makes anxiety churn in her stomach, but at this moment she has already done all that she can on her own. There's an invisible timer counting down and her senses have been urging her to act and act quickly. Her currant age and skill-set have necessitated that she bring _someone_ at least a small bit of her confidence._ _

__She points to a decently sized patch of flowers near some rocks. "Let's sit there, Zuzu! I want to make a flower chain!"_ _

__They settle in comfortably and Mikako begins to steer the conversation, weaving stems as she talks._ _

__"Big brother, I'm glad you're back safe! I've been lonely while you were away. Madara's always gone, anymore, and everyone is angry and scary."_ _

__Her brother hesitates, looking slightly guilty. 'So, he's noticed it, as well. That's probably why he's been taking longer away missions.'_ _

__"Ah...well, you know. Things are tense, little sister. And Madara is very busy with keeping the clan safe"_ _

__"But he's _not_! He's ignoring everything to go watch my soulmate!" Izuna sputters as she continues, earnestly meeting his eyes and taking his hand for added effect. "He...he's gotten so _mean_ , Zuzu! Not to me, but in all sorts of ways. He killed a cat because it scratched me! That's not-!"_ _

__She gulps back a sob that isn't entirely scripted. She loves her brothers _so much_ that it aches to see one of them behave so abnormally. It had been years since she last compared her brother to the man who had killed Shikako a lifetime ago, but now the similarities seemed to grow every day. She is afraid for her eldest brother. Afraid _of_ him._ _

__Abandoning all pretense, Mikako drops her flowers and throws herself into a shocked Izuna's lap, wrapping her shaking arms around his neck._ _

__"There's something bad and empty around him, and it always gets worse when he makes that gross potion! And that scroll he keeps reading, it makes my head hurt to look at it!"_ _

__"I-" Izuna's body is tense, but he wraps her gently in his arms. "I didn't know things had gotten so bad. I'm sorry, Mikako, you must have been so scared. I'll talk to him right away, I promise. I'll get to the bottom of this."_ _

__She shivers at the ice in his voice and prays that she's made the right decision._ _


	5. Part 5

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> In which shit goes down and Jashin!Possessed!Madara is super creepy
> 
> (You guys are terrible. Now I really am trying to work in a trip to Suna. Do you even know how much longer that will make this thing? But the idea of Izuna, Tobirama, and Mikako traveling together is ridiculously interesting. Damn you all, you inspiring pests!)
> 
> (Warning for slight noncon mouth-to-mouth)

\-----

Izuna is quiet as he carries Mikako through the compound and to the Clan Head's house. His mind is reeling at the information Mikako had given him. He'd _known_ that the Clan had been getting more aggressive as a whole, but the facts hadn't really _registered_. It took his beloved sister's tears to thin the fog that he only now realizes was surrounding his thoughts. It's cloying and soft, like the urge to sleep after a large meal. It had almost felt natural to allow himself to simply act without having to reason out his actions.

It's still there even now, tempting him to return to that strange state of not-being.

He refuses it. Focuses on the child in his arms and the promise he has made.

Izuna is not a genius, not like some others that the clan has produced, _ ~~not like that Senju bastard~~_ , but that doesn't mean he is a fool. If Madara's strange behavior began to occur when he started to read that damned Jashinist Scroll, then the scroll must be destroyed. Surely, that would release the hold it has on his elder brother.

And if it meant keeping his siblings and the rest of his family safe, he would find some other potion to keep The Senju incoherent.

"I think Madara's gone to my soulmate, now." Mikako shifts in his hold and he obligingly sets her down as they enter the house. The residual stink from concocting the potion is dizzying and Izuna wonders how they'd ever thought it was a good idea to make it indoors, let alone allow it to influence their baby sister. ' _Well, that's simple_ ', he chides himself, ' _We weren't thinking_'. A quick search confirms that Madara is nowhere inside. Neither is the scroll. Izuna supposes that life wouldn't be so easy for him.

It is strange, though. He'd been the one to originally keep up with dosing their 'guest'; keeping a man of Tobirama's caliber securely drugged was a surprisingly difficult task. The potion hadn't meant to be used long-term and it showed. Even before Izuna had started taking so many away missions, the infuriating Senju had been developing some sort of resistance. Or maybe he was simply becoming used to the pain.

Izuna frowns, leading his sister into the garden. "Mikako, I'm going to go to Madara. I need you to stay out here for me, okay? This is important; I need to know you're safe."

For a moment, he fears that she'll argue, but in the end she pouts and nods.

"Good luck, Zuzu."

\-----

There's an old shrine a decent distance from the residential area of the clan lands, yet still within range of Madara's sensing abilities. Several months ago Madara and Izuna had refurbished it into a near-invulnerable holding cell for one exceptionally dangerous and important shinobi. Seals line the walls, hiding the building, reinforcing the door, keeping Tobirama's chakra muted and untraceable. The Dog itself is kept locked in a padded iron casket, inlaid into the floor and easily hidden, with only a few carefully placed holes for breathing. They had make certain that he wouldn't have the room to move, let alone make handseals, in case he somehow escaped his other bindings.

To say that Izuna is startled to see the door propped open with Madara's gunbai is and understatement. He rushes in, his brother's name on his lips, only to stumble in shock.

Madara is relaxed, a saucer of sake in his hand and a half-eaten plate of inarizuchi at his side. He looks up at Izuna and smiles. "Izuna! You're back early! I trust everything went well?"

Slowly, Izuna's sharingan eyes scan the room. There was Madara, seated comfortably, as if he had lived in this shrine all his life. There was the casket before Madara, open to the world. There was his brother, lazily watching Tobirama Senju glare, his propped up body weak and trembling, but his mind obviously his own.

The Senju had flinched at his entrance. Izuna counts that as a victory even as he turns to his brother.

"Madara, what are you doing-?" He's cut off as Madara waves him over, expression pleased.

"Sit down, Izuna. I'm here to give our guest his medicine." If anything, Tobirama glares harder "You should join me; it's always a pleasant show. It's so much more satisfying to watch him writhe in pain when he has a mind to lose."

Izuna sits carefully, caught off-guard. ' _That explains the change in schedule. This...is this the result of studying that scroll_?' He suppressed his impulse to shiver. His brother had always had a malicious side, but this was...definitely the kind of thing that would scare Mikako.

Mikako. She'd been dealing with this the whole time he was gone? Izuna is disgusted at himself. And how is he supposed to bring up this strange behavior's affects on their little sister in front of the Dog, anyway? He'd rather cut out his own tongue than allow that Senju knowledge of Mikako.

"I'm sure it is, Brother, but-" He's cut off again. Madara's smile has taken on a manic edge to it as he makes to stand. His movements are odd. Jerky with suppressed excitement. Izuna watches him with ever-growing trepidation.

"It is, it really is! I keep asking him how it feels, too, but he doesn't speak. I'd force an answer, but I hardly want to hurt our little Mikako-chan." Izuna sucks in a breath, horror at the casual betrayal flaring. _Tobirama was never supposed to know about her, let alone her name_! A glance at the captive confirms that neither the name nor the affection it's spoken with surprises the scum. What else has his brother blabbed about while under this influence?!

Madara is moving, retrieving the flask they'd taken to storing the Draught of Agony in and settling himself next to the bound Senju. Tobirama tries ineffectively to escape the arm now pulling him close to the elder Uchiha. Madara grins in Izuna's direction and he despairs at the madness he can see in his brother's eyes. How had things gone so wrong?! There's a cold well of horror creeping up his throat as Madara almost kindly brushes Tobirama's hair from his _~~frightened~~_ eyes. ' _He looks ridiculous with long hair_ ' Izuna can't help the useless thought as he stares morbidly.

"Watching him makes me so curious. What kind of pain could make _Tobirama Senju_ scream the way he does? What is it that reduces him to such a _pathetic_ state?" Madara absently continues to thread his fingers through the Senju's hair as he glances in Izuna's direction. The fear and distress in the shaking albino's eyes is almost palpable and Izuna is unnerved by the entire display.

Madara raises the flask and shifts Tobirama again, forcing his jaw open to drink the foul liquid and Izuna is momentarily relieved; once this is done the dog will be safely locked away again and he can focus on finding that horrible scroll.

That relief is short-lived, however, as Madara once again focuses his attention on him

"And now that you're here I can find out!"

Izuna is leaping forward the moment he realizes his brother's mad intentions, but he is too late. Madara tips the flask to his own mouth and swallows before swiftly pressing his mouth over the Senju's, forcing the remaining concoction into his captive. Tobirama sputters, choking in horrified shock, before being dropped inelegantly to the floor as Izuna yanks his possessed brother away.

" _ **Madara, what the fu-!**_ "

In a rush of panic, Izuna nearly throws his brother out the door of the shrine. Madara is gasping, lips and chin stained black from where the draught had spilled. A high, wheezing laugh answers Izuna's frantic actions.

"This...this pain! How wondrous! It's agony!"

He convulses with a scream, and Izuna throws himself bodily across his only remaining brother, cradling his head to try to keep him from harming himself in his wild throes. Madara roars at him like a beast and throws him off. Unprepared, Izuna lands roughly and grunts as he feels his kneecap slip out of place. His brother's sharingan spins like bloody pinwheels as he rises to his feet and advances on his downed brother.

"You. How _dare_ you?!"

There's a shocked cry to his right and Izuna snaps his head around to snarl at whichever clan member had the audacity to come to the forbidden shrine.

The sharingan perfectly memorizes Mikako's terrified expression.

' _Of course she would follow..._ ' Izuna can't even begin to explain the situation, doesn't have the time to as his precious, beloved sister runs between them and grabs onto Madara's robes.

"Mada-nii, stop! Please, you're hurting him-!"

Izuna's blood turns to ice as the monstrous _thing_ in his brother's body knocks his sister away with a careless backhand. Her sharp cry of pain floods his vision with red as he forces his dislocated kneecap back into place.

The sharingan remembers the way her cheek turns red and bruised, the shock on her face, the fear in her eyes-

He orders here to run, and she does.

Straight into the open shrine.


	6. Part 6

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> In which two souls meet and one heart shatters
> 
> (Have you ever been re-reading your last chapter for context and been excited for the author to update, then realize that you're the author and you're in charge of making the next chapter? It's a weird feeling. I want more of the story, but typing it out takes so long and I'm impatient!)

\-----

Tobirama falls heavily, his screaming muscles unable to hold himself up without assistance. He has never before been glad for Izuna Uchiha's presence and he'll be damned if he doesn't take advantage of it. He strains himself, tries to lever his body out of the sunken casket despite his weakened state. Desperation gives his body strength and wild hope flares in his chest.

He hadn't swallowed the potion.

Madara's bizarre actions and Izuna's subsequent response had knocked the flask away and given him the chance to spit out what the elder Uchiha had forced into his mouth. This was his first viable chance to escape and he wasn't about to let it pass him by. He couldn't. He doesn't know how long he's been held by the Uchiha, but any longer would destroy him. Tobirama shimmies himself further out of the hated prison and tries not to think about being buried alive, being alone in the dark for days on end with only agony and fear as his constants.

There is shouting outside and pain blooms across his face. It takes Tobirama a genuine moment to realize that he isn't the one who's been directly struck. His soulmate, the 'Mikako-chan' Madara has often waxed poetic about; she's been attacked.

' _Don't you dare get killed!_ ' His thoughts are fierce and slightly unhinged ' _Not when I'm so close-_!' It would be the most disgusting sort of irony.

There's the sound of rushing footsteps and a small figure darts through the open doorway. ' _A child_ ,' He registers, even as sick fear instinctively claws at his throat. He can't allow himself to be recaptured; he's not even freed himself yet! The young Uchiha ( _for what else could they be_?) turns sharply and shoves the gunbai away from the heavy door. It swings shut with a foreboding thud and the windowless shrine is abruptly plunged into near-total darkness.

\-----

Mikako's heart is racing as she slumps against the door, wishing for the umpteenth time that her body was more like Shikako's. If she could mold chakra better, if she had been allowed to become a kunoichi, surely things wouldn't have come to this.

She knows that disgusting aura and hates it nearly as much as she fears it. ' _How in the Sage's name did Madara come into contact with Jashin_?'

There's the sound of another set of lung breathing harshly from further into the room and Mikako's attention snaps back into place. It's too dark to make out any concrete shapes. She slowly begins to gather chakra into her palm, somewhat comforted by the familiar action.

"Hello? Who's there?"

There's movement to her left and she turns, the glow of chakra in her palm throwing the area into a dim relief. Red eyes meet hers, anger and pain splayed openly on a face she'd only seen in textbooks, only none of them had ever shown Tobirama Senju like _this_. Mikako can see now what her brothers had been doing and the results burn in her gut. Guilt is an ugly thing, tearing at her heart. ' _I should have done something sooner; I should have made them show him to me!_'

The Senju's blackened lips and chin catch her attention first. The discoloration was obviously due to the potion she had watched her brothers brew so often. His upper and lower arms are carefully bound to his sides with soft but sturdy cloths, as are his thighs and calves. He's lying on his belly, glaring up at her through too-long hair, halfway out of a coffin that is inlaid in the very floor of the shrine. A bruise that mirrors her own is forming even as she watches and the tremors that wrack his body make her heart _ache_.

' _Is this what it's like, having a soulmate? I've never felt so wretched..._ '

Mikako steps forward and flinches when ~~the Niidiame _her soulmate_~~ Tobirama bares his teeth at her. The muscles in his throat are tense and strained as he struggles to speak.

"Ssstay...back, Uchi-!"

There's a solid slam against the door and Mikako jumps in surprise, her chakra light flickering. They both of them are tense and silent until the sounds of the battle outside move away.

She swallows nervously and carefully kneels down, telegraphing her movements. Tobirama's eyes are wide and his breath is quick with distrust. The blatant distress he is in, that he _has been in_ for months, because of _her_ , brings unwelcome tears to her eyes.

"I...My name is Mikako Uchiha. I think you are my soulmate?" She didn't mean for it to come out as a question, but this strange bond that this world has given to her makes her yearn for acknowledgement. She reaches out hesitantly, unsure of what to do after meeting one's predetermined other half.

"Please, let me...I can help. And I need your help. And I'm _so sorry_..." She trails off miserably. There hadn't been soulmates in either of her last lives. For all her knowledge and maturity, she's once again out of her depths.

Tobirama stares at the girl, the 'Mikako-chan', Madara spoke so often of, and... she's his. He can feel the gentle pull of the soulbond properly settling, but his mind is too scattered and worn to fully appreciate the moment. Another offense to be laid out at her brothers' feet.

She's _his_ , and she's crying, and Tobirama is so disgustingly helpless in the face of this situation that it's almost funny.

"...My arms."

His throat is dry and rusted from disuse, but he gets the words out anyway. He keeps himself as still as possible as the child crawls closer to his and carefully begins to untie him. It takes some doing, as she only has one hand to work with, but eventually the wraps loosen and Tobirama can move his arms, _his fingers_ , again. He takes a fortifying breath before hauling himself the rest of the way out of his tomb.

He can't move far on his own. His body has spent months seizing nonstop under the influence of the Draught of Agony; his overworked muscles are stiff and using them is torturous.

Mikako makes quicker work of the bindings on his legs, then timidly puts a hand on his shoulder.

"Stay still. There are suppressant seals on your arms. I need to find something to wash them off with."

Tobirama manages to make some noise of agreement before closing his eyes. He can hear the girl padding around the small room. She returns with an old candle and the bottle of sake Madara had brought with him. He forces his exhausted eyes open again, watching her silently. He wonders if she even knows who he is.

Mikako is just finishing wiping off the last of the inky seals when there's a clear knock on the shrine's door. She and Tobirama both tense and share a look. She wipes her hands and stands, moving to the door but making no effort to open it. There's another knock, followed by Izuna's voice.

"Mikako? Mikako, I know you must be scared, but I've managed to knock out Madara. I burned the scroll, too." His voice is strained, heavy with worry "I'm going to come in, now-"

"No!"

The door begins to open inward and Mikako throws herself at it, slamming it shut. There's a moment of stunned silence before her brother speaks again. He sounds lost.

"Mi-Mikako-chan? Sister, please, I promise I can fix this. Look, just let me in, it's _dangerous_ for you to be in there." The door shakes again, but she keeps her weight against it.

" _No!_ " The stress and tension of watching her family descend into madness is bearing down on her, strengthened by her soulmate's tortured self right before her eyes. Mikako can feel the childish tantrum building and does nothing to stop it. Her brothers have destroyed any chance of Konoha, her home, existing because they felt the need to punish a man for something he had no control over. There's no way Tobirama would ever trust the Uchiha enough to build a village with them. Even Hashirama might turn away from them when he finds out what they've done to his little brother.

She feels sick. It's her fault. _Again_. If she hadn't existed, this never would have happened.

"Zuzu-nii, you're a _liar_! You said my soulmate was _safe_ and _sleeping_ and you _lied_! You were _hurting_ him!"

Her brother's voice grows desperate as he tries to force open the door without hurting her. " _He_ was hurting _you_ , Mikako! Every time he went into battle he proved that he didn't care about you getting hurt! He's a threat!"

It's an old and bitter laugh that bubbles out of her chest as she shouts back at him, wanting to cut at his heart, wanting him to feel some measure of her pain at his betrayal.

"I'm not _stupid_ , Izuna! I know who he is! You've never cared about ending this stupid war; you'd rather keep fighting until everyone dies! Right now, the biggest threat to me is _**you**_!"


	7. Part 7

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> In which there are time skips and everyone is very sad
> 
> (I love all you people so much.)
> 
> (Warning for some references to the kind of weird dreams a sexually active nineteen-year-old would have about someone he hates)
> 
> \-----

Conscious returns to Madara with all the subtlety of a katon jutsu and twice the burning sensation. He jerks awake and immediately regrets the instinctual action; his entire body is one big ache. He's fairly sure that even his hair is throbbing is pain. With tremendous effort, he manages to turn his head just enough to confirm that Izuna is sitting vigilantly at his bedside.

"Wha' hid me? It hur's..." He's fairly certain that he must have a magnificent bruise across his jaw, and the brief look of satisfaction on his little brother's face is damning evidence. The smug air vanishes almost immediately as it appears, though, and anxiety begins to eat at Madara's mind.

Izuna looks away from him.

"Brother, what is the last thing you remember?"

He frowns, struggling to recall the information. Just what has gone on while he was unconscious? There are bruise-dark bags under Izuna's eyes and his posture is distressingly slumped. His brother had always made a point to keep his back straight even when delivering bad news, but now he is bowed as if under a great weight. He looks like shit. The anxiety heightens to fear. There is something wrong, something he cannot yet pin down.

"I was returning from the shrine, reading the scroll we recovered from Hot Springs. We'd gotten word that the Kaguya were sighted near our lands and you'd gone with some squads to ensure they were only passing by, so I needed to learn how to brew the Draught..." He squints his eyes, trying to recall more, but the rest is foggy. "What's happened, Izuna?"

The younger man is quiet for a long moment. Madara reaches out, gasping at the pain but forcing himself to clutch at the sleeve of Izuna's kimono. Izuna catches his hand and holds it gently.

"...That was four months ago, Madara."

He is dumbfounded with shock.

"What? How? An attack? Dammit, Izuna, don't just sit there; tell me what's going on!"

Finally, Izuna turns to look at him.

"As far as we've found, that scroll had some sort of link to the cultists' deity. You...You haven't been yourself, brother. None of us have. Not until a few days ago, when everything we'd taken from the Hot Springs group was gathered and _burned_."

There's a shaky emphasis on the word, a savage satisfaction. Madara hardly notices it as he parses through the information.

"I've been _possessed_?!" He almost squawks the question. It's not out of the realm of possibility; the Uchiha clan has always been superstitious. Chakra and souls have had a long and strange history within clan lore.

"We all were, to one degree or another. Mikako came to me after I returned from a long mission and cried. She was probably the one least influenced, but she was so frightened. She was the one who broke me out of my own fugue state."

Izuna pauses yet again and Madara is suddenly terrifyingly, brilliantly aware of what has been wrong since he woke up. _Mikako is not there_. It wasn't just that she wasn't at his bedside, waiting for him to wake up. He couldn't sense her chakra _anywhere_! Heart in his throat, he grips his brother's hand desperately.

"I left her at the house and went to confront you at the shrine. You were...you drank some of the Draught of Agony and attacked me. Mikako had followed me and she tried to stop you-" Madara is shaking, a hoarse moan of denial is all that pours from his dry lips as the world seems to fall away from him. Izuna realizes immediately the terrible conclusion Madara had come to and hastens to assuage him.

"You didn't kill her, no, please, Brother, I swear to you. You only struck her away and she hid in the shrine for the rest of the fight."

But there must be more to it, because Mikako is not here and the last time Izuna was so careless with his appearance was when they buried their last brother and-!

There is a ringing in Madara's head, a desperate cry for this conversation to be only a dream, because if it is real... Izuna's head is bowed over their clasped hands and he is shaking as he continues to speak.

"I managed to subdue you, but...Mikako wouldn't come out of the shrine or let me into it. She'd found the Senju. Recognized him. She..." He laughs bitterly "We fucked up, Brother. Somehow, we must have forgotten that even if Mikako isn't a shinobi, she's still an _Uchiha_. She loves just as deeply and terribly as the rest of us. She loves him despite us trying to keep them apart and despite the pain he caused her. She was so furious. I've never before heard her yell the way she did."

"In the end I had to leave her in there. I had to make sure that destroying the scroll truly freed you and the rest of the clan. I sent Hikkako to stand guard immediately, but...they were gone. Somehow, they'd vanished without a trace. I don't know how; the door was still blocked from the inside."

Mikako's _gone_. Mikako's gone and Izuna is weeping openly and the future is nothing but endless gray before them.

They had thought to punish the man who was the cause of so much pain, but their actions had lost them their little sister. Their beautiful, precious Mikako, who always believed in peace, who was always so kind, who loved her brothers so fiercely. What had she thought when she had discovered how terribly they had betrayed her?

Madara doesn't realize he's crying until Izuna shifts onto the bed and curls against him, something he hadn't done since he was a young child.

They hold each other close and mourn.

\-----

The days following Madara's recovery are dull and hollow. The entire Clan is shaken by the incident and they desperately cling to one another, trying to keep themselves from despairing over what might have been. Missions are kept to those close to home and skirmishes with other clans only occur when the enemies press for a fight.

It's difficult for everyone. The little light that had shown so brightly in troubled times is missing along with her soulmate.

Izuna is empty; nothing but a vessel for grief and guilt and self-loathing. He was the one who had found the scroll. It was his suggestion to use the Draught to torment their captive. He had been the one to let hatred consume him to the point where he'd willingly destroyed his sister's trust in him.

He thought he hated Tobirama. What he feels for himself proves that he had no real knowledge of what hatred was.

Madara despairs. Peace had once been his dream; a dream he had shared whole-heartedly with his sister. Now his own actions has dashed it against the stones. He may not have been in control of his actions the past four months, but he had been fully sane and culpable when he'd given the order to torture Tobirama. He knows he was gleeful whenever the man faltered, let terror show on his face whenever he was entombed back into the casket. He'd viscerally enjoyed putting his foot on Tobirama's head and mocking him for his weakness. (Madara will never admit to those dreams where he goes further; of his hands around Tobirama's throat, bruising that pretty pale skin. Power is such a heady drug and having dominion over the powerful is a rush unlike any other. He prays that his possessed self had disregarded those urges. He would never claim to be a decent man, but even he had his limits.)

He'd utterly ruined Mikako's chances of growing up without a war constantly wearing on her, waiting to snap her up and devour her like it had so many other children.

Madara writes treaties and yells at the elders. He sends a message to the Senju and overtures of alliances with the clans the Uchiha were neutral with. He works for days, obsessed with making things _right_. ~~If~~ _when_ his sister returns to him, he needs to be able to prove himself. He needs to be better. The world needs to be kinder. She needs to know that _he's so sorry_.

A week goes by, then a month. The Senju are silent and Madara fears what that means for his people. His sister. Hashirama should have leapt at the chance to unite their clans and the fact that he hasn't is worrying.

Madara waits and plans and tries to bring his family out of the cloud of despair surrounding them.

A hawk finally brings a reply in the early days of spring.  
__  
First light.  
The River.  
Come alone.

_~Hashirama Senju_


	8. Part 8

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> In which Hashirama has some major decisions ahead of him

\-----

At first Hashirama isn't too concerned when Tobirama misses his expected return date. A little worried, yes, because he always is when his little brother does a solo mission, but not terribly so. Tobirama was a strong and clever shinobi; Hashirama had no doubts that he could handle the assassination of a minor noble. Delays are inevitable when it comes to long journeys.

After a week, Hashirama sends out a search party. They return without his brother, but not empty-handed. They had found the remains of a Jashinist ritual site and evidence of a massive pyre.

They'd found Tobirama's happuri in a fire pit, metal warped and twisted by the heat.

\-----

There isn't a body to be buried, but the clan erects a tombstone anyway. There is a ceremony and Hashirama stands tall and strong even as he freely mourns with the rest of his family. It isn't until later that night that he collapses into his wife's arms, sobbing and cursing at a world so cruel. Mito holds him tightly and weeps as well. She is a newcomer to the clan, but already she loves it fiercely. Her brother-in-law had been kind and brilliant and she will miss him dearly.

But life moves ever onward, even if it feels as if your heart has been cut out of you. Hashirama continues to lead despite the ever constant feeling of loss. His grief is nearly palpable whenever he turns, looking over his shoulder to address a man who is no longer there. There is a hollowness in his eyes that never quite goes away.

\-----

It takes nearly five months before Hashirama can find the mental fortitude to begin going through his deceased brother's study; Tobirama has always been an intensely private person and intruding on his space now that he wasn't here to chase Hashirama out felt abnormal. Wrong.

He imagines his brother sighing about Hashirama's non-existent sense of boundaries as he opens the door, and the thought brings a wan smile to his face. There are scrolls carefully arranged in cabinets that span the length of one wall. The desk is tidy if worn and he can almost see Tobirama looking up, fond exasperation in his face as once again his elder brother barges into his workspace.

The soft click of the door closing banishes the image and Hashirama has to swallow down the lump that forms in his throat. He takes a steadying breath and steps forward. He can't keep this room frozen in time, a mausoleum to a man who had meant the world to him. It isn't healthy, nor is it fair to his brother's memory. Tobirama had always been a man of progress; to add his studies and notes to the clan archives would surely-!

There's a blinding flash of light and one of the cabinets explodes. Hashirama shrieks in surprise as a man, naked and trying to shield the child in his arms from the debris, tumbles to the floor.

There is the sound of yelling in the hallway, his clansmen responding to the din, but Hashirama can't begin to care as the man lifts his head and stares at him with heart-breaking desperation.

"...Anija?"

\-----

Hours later Hashirama still sits at his brother's bedside, one hand kept determinedly on his wrist to feel the thready pulse that means Tobirama is _alive_. Tortured and damaged and so, so hurt, but _alive_ and he thanks every god ever named that he hadn't sent his brother to his death.

The little Uchiha girl sleeping next to Tobirama shifts and sighs, her eyes red and swollen from crying. Tobirama's soulmate, the one he'd realized he'd had only a few years ago. Hashirama loves her. She'd brought him his brother back to him, traced out the seal for the Hiraishin under Tobirama's instruction, fed it the chakra the experimental technique needed to activate. Brave and brilliant and determined; she is more than a perfect match for his little brother. They had refused to be separated, clinging to one another and practically snarling at anyone who'd tried to force them apart.

She's the one who told them the story of what had happened. The soulbond, the tattoos. Her brothers' frantic trip to Hot Springs. Their return. She talked about a scroll that seemed to suck the goodness out of anyone in range and eventually she talked about discovering Tobirama.

Many of the clan were calling for war, for blood and vengeance, but Hashirama cannot agree to do so. Tobirama too, when he'd heard a particularly vitriolic young kunoichi demand the chance to have retribution, had sharply disagreed. " _That type of thinking is what caused this in the first place_ " he had said, ragged voice cutting through the shouting. That he had been hugging an Uchiha child to his chest when he had made the statement only solidified his position.

Hashirama tries to avoid thinking of Madara. Of his childhood friend torturing his brother. Of their shared dream being tossed away in the name of petty, vindictive cruelty.

The weight of a gaze draws his attention from the red tattoos newly adorning his brother's face. The girl, Mikako, is staring shyly at him. He smiles at her. She greatly resembles his old friend, but her returning smile is nothing like Madara's half-cocked grins and smirks. It's reassuring to see.

The smile fades quickly, though.

"Are you going to kill my brothers?" It's whispered so quietly that Hashirama almost misses it. He closes his eyes for a moment and regrets so very much that Madara and Izuna had put their little sister in such a terrible position. How must she feel here, surrounded by her clan's enemies for the sake of her soulmate? He reopens his eyes and leans over Tobirama's sleeping body to gently smooth her hair out of her face. Mikako doesn't flinch, only blinks at the unexpected touch.

"There will not be a war from this. What is done cannot be changed and Tobirama was right when he said that revenge is what caused this to begin with. If your brothers attack us we will defend ourselves, but the Senju will not go looking for a fight."

She nods hesitantly. "I don't want them to know where I am, yet. I can't... I don't understand how they could do what they did."

"There's no need to tell them, then." _Not until things have settled down_. Hashirama is not about to send a young girl back into a potentially dangerous family situation, brother's soulmate or not.

\-----

As a whole, the Senju clan isn't sure what to make of the quiet little Uchiha who had rescued one of their best warriors. She was an enemy who had given aid to one of their number. She was chakra-crippled but a prodigy with the difficult art of fuuinjutsu. She continued to wear the Uchiha mon but openly dreamed of peace.

In the beginning, she rarely left Tobirama's side; the both of them were too traumatized to be far from one another without triggering a debilitating sense of anxiety. As they both began to recover, Tobirama would encourage her to explore without him. He could tell that she was lonely and out of sorts; the culture shock only adding to her distressing experience. It helped him too, on the bad days, when her resemblance to Madara was too much for him to handle.

She would take tea with the Lady Mito and spend hours discussing sealing theory. She would meditate with Hashirama and quietly talk to him about peace and treaties and a village where torture had no place. She would play with the clan's children and introduce them to Replacement Tag. She would cook with Touka and never bat an eye at their pronouns.

Hashirama receives a falcon from the Uchiha, one of the ones Madara had personally trained. The other clan is reaching out and seeking peace at long last. He sets the missive aside. He waits. He watches. Spies and informants report massive changes in the Uchiha clan, but the reasons remain unknown.

It is a month before he is satisfied enough to respond.


	9. Part 9

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> A Matching Scars inspired fanfiction.
> 
> In which there is a meeting and things start looking up.

\-----

Madara likes being in control. There is a compulsive need in him to know every aspect of a situation, to go into battles with utmost preparation, to keep a watchful eye on everyone he is responsible for. He wouldn't be lying to say that he _needs_ it to keep himself balanced; that the security that comes with it is like another layer of armour as powerful as his Susanoo.

As he reaches the point in the river where he and Hashirama had so much history together, he again faces the distressing fact that _Hashirama_ , of all people, is the one in control for this meeting. It isn't like Madara to willingly enter any sort of confrontation at a disadvantage, but...

Mikako is gone from the Uchiha lands. If Tobirama hadn't somehow gotten her to the Senju then there may be no hope to see her again.

Izuna had argued with him. Tried to convince him to at least wear his armour, to take his gunbai, to allow him to follow in secret. Madara had refused it all, determined to meet his old friend honorably. 

Hashirama is waiting for him when he clears the last branch and lands in the clearing. The river is as strong as ever, the recent snow-melt slightly flooding its banks. Madara is struck by how similar their positions are to how they were when they first met; both of them grieving for lost siblings and longing for an end to their clan's feud.

Then, he's struck by something else entirely.

\-----

Madara stumbles back, hands clutching at his definitely broken nose, blood spilling between his fingers. Hashirama wipes his hand on his loose robes.

" _What the Hell_ , Hashirama?! You broke my _nose_!"

" _And you broke my brother_!"

Madara freezes, eyes locked on the him. Hashirama keeps his face stern and cold, daring his old friend to deny it. The Uchiha swallows and lowers his hands.

"You know, then. What else do you know?"

"Enough to understand why your sister didn't want you to know where she was for a month." He's uncharacteristically pleased to see Madara flinch at his words. As painful as it is to hurt him like this, it needs to be done. He _cannot_ make peace with this man without forcing him to see his actions for what they were. Madara has always been like a brother to him, but he will not tolerate or turn a blind eye to his faults. Not anymore. If the Uchiha leader needs to be taught a lesson in humanity, then by the Sage, Hashirama will be the one to drive it through his thick skull.

Madara's complexion has gone pale. Hashirama folds his arms in front of him and scowls.

"Tell me what you were thinking, Madara, when you began to torture my little brother." ' _My only living family left_ ' he thinks, and the grief that had consumed him tries to return at the thought. Hashirama pushes it away.

"You...You can't understand what it's like, Hashirama. You have no idea what it's _like_ to watch your baby sister nearly bleed out from a wound that has no source! She wasn't even walking yet, the first time he almost killed her! And it only got worse as she grew up. She'd have burns and broken bones and _she's so small_!"

Madara's eyes are wide and frantic, a hand runs through his hair and tugs at it; a stress habit Hashirama had only seen a few times when they were young. He fights to keep his face unmoved even as his heart is pained at the idea of little Mikako suffering through the injuries his brother had been dealt over the years. He can empathize with that helplessness even if it doesn't excuse Madara's actions.

"And you blamed Tobirama for being her soulmate? You thought he intentionally got himself wounded out of spite?" Scornful isn't a tone Hashirama's taken since his father had died. 

"I never thought you were a coward, Madara."

The man before him jerks at the unexpected insult and starts to snarl back, but Hashirama continues mercilessly.

"You're lying to yourself. Wanting to 'protect' Mikako isn't your reason, it's your _excuse_. You had to know early on that her soulmate had to be outside of your clan, but you never tried to seek out peace in order to find them. How many of those wounds came from your own jutsu, Madara? How many times has Izuna's sword struck Tobirama? I've been working for years to try to settle this rivalry between our clans; how many fewer scars would our siblings have if you had done the same?"

Madara stumbles back as he advances, his taller frame and damning words seeming to loom over the older man. The Uchiha tries to grasp for words, for more denials, but the shock of the accusations seems to have stolen his breath.

"You found my brother under the worst sort of circumstances and you willfully continued them! You made them _worse_! It would have been kinder to leave him to the _Jashinists_ than with _you_! Your actions had nothing to do with keeping your sister safe and everything to do with you just wanting to do them."

His hands are gripping the front of Madara's robes, lifting him and shaking him slightly as if to knock loose some kind of _sense_. Hashirama's grief and rage are burning through him; there are tears in his eyes as he yells.

" _Do you even know what you've done_?!"

\-----

"I don't."

Madara's hands hold his friend's wrists, but he doesn't struggle. Hashirama has always been a better man; his pain is visible, but tightly leashed and Madara is certain he is in no danger.

Physically, at least.

Hashirama's words have cut through him, leaving gaping, open wounds. His deeply hidden faults and delusions have been harshly dragged to the light and lay exposed under the man's unflinching truths. All those traits he loathes in others are displayed plainly in his own heart and the sight of them disturbs him.

The spaces in between are beginning to flood with remorse. He's not sure what to do with that emotion; guilt is for more often his companion.

He bows his head as Hashirama slowly lowers him back to the ground. He cannot bring himself to raise his eyes and meet that painfully honest scrutiny.

"I remember the beginning. Giving the order. Putting him the casket. Helping Izuna to make the potion and forcing him to drink it. I remember that, but...after the first few weeks there's nothing. Not even a blur. _I don't know what I did_."

There is silence between the two of them, something raw and broken.

Hashirama steps back. He collects himself, reigning in his chakra and wiping the tears from his face. Madara wonders at his composure, so unlike the ridiculously cheerful boy he had once befriended and the even more foolish man he meets in battle. ' _Of course he would have matured_ ' he realizes ' _He's thought his brother dead for nearly half a year_ '. The brother Madara had kept from him, even knowing how important Hashirama's family is to him.

Shame joins regret and Madara drops his head in a formal bow. The pride that would usually prevent him from showing such weakness is in tatters. His voice is rough with emotion.

"I...apologize sincerely for my actions against you and your brother. I will do whatever I must to make amends for them."

\-----

There is relief blooming in Hashirama's chest at Madara's words. ' _There is hope for our peace, after all_ ' he thinks as his anger fades in the face of his fierce optimism. He reaches out, one hand grasping his friend's shoulder to pull him out of the bow. The other hand he gathers medical chakra in and uses it to heal the man's bruised and broken nose.

And then he wraps Madara in a tight embrace, despite the short squawk of protest. If Madara didn't want to be hugged, then he should have grown tall enough to avoid them. There's a resigned sigh from the body in his arms and two arms tentatively return the gesture. Hashirama grins into the ridiculous mane of hair his friend has grown over the years, then releases him.

"I will send a hawk with a treaty within the week. We can start the official processes then, but at the moment we can enjoy the cease-fire between our clans."

Madara nods and looks away for a moment.

"Is...You spoke of Mikako earlier. Is she well? Is she happy?"

Hashirama's heart is cheered further by the concern. His closest friend's family will have a long recovery ahead of them, sure to be full of pitfalls and backtracking, but seeing the love the siblings have for one another gives him hope. Those three Uchiha are bound to butt heads and there will undoubtedly be ridiculous amounts of shouting, but right now in this moment, the world is bright with promise.

"She'll be happier when she can see you and Izuna again. Mikako's hurt and angry, but it's clear she loves and misses you both. It might take some time for her to be willing to reach out, though; she's as pigheaded as you are!"

"Oi, don't you compare my little sister to a pig, you overgrown tree!"


	10. Part 10

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> A Matching Scars inspired fanfic
> 
> In which Tobirama is F.I.N.E. (Fucked up, Insecure, Neurotic, and Emotional)
> 
> (Hey guys, that last chapter was too happy right? Don't worry, I got just what you want.)

\-----

When Hashirama has Touka accompany him to the delegation for armistice with the Uchiha clan, Tobirama is not surprised. While his mind would be for more useful for such negotiations, he acknowledges that he is currently...fragile. Hashirama didn't even ask to have him come along and stay hidden to review the treaties minutia.  
Tobirama understands.

Mikako refused to go, even when Touka pointed out that seeing her safe would assuage any kidnapping accusations against the Senju. Mikako snaps back at them that her clan had no leg to stand on in that argument and then had promptly been _mortified_. His soulmate is certainly a unique individual and he suspects that she is perfectly willing to hold herself hostage to ensure that the Uchiha submit to a quick end to their generations-long feud.

She's brilliant, as well. On the good days they have been hashing out the rough outline of an primary education system. Mikako is so certain that this peace and the village may bring will last that Tobirama can almost see it, too. She speaks of it as if it already exists, warm affection in her tone as she draws out supply logistics to match his budgeting plans.

It's a bewildering feeling to have someone who also realizes what kind of planning goes into the kind of cultural revolution that Hashirama is creating, to finally have someone who is able to keep up with him. ' _I'll probably need to keep up with her, soon_' is a thought that often follows her arrivals.

On the bad days he sees Madara in her hair, Izuna in the shape of her eyes, the unnamed kunoichi who killed Kawarama in the proud line of her nose.

He sees Uchiha he's killed in the stubborn jut of her chin, in the tilt of her head, in her distracted gestures.

He's more quiet on those days. Moves more carefully, as if in the presence of a predator. 

She seems to understand. She's quieter, too. Takes to humming and letting her footfalls be heard. Ties her hair back and forces a smile.

He hates that it helps. She shouldn't have to change who she is for his comfort. Tobirama is ten years her senior and he should be stronger than this, more capable. 

\-----

The day after the delegation leaves, Mito decides that it's high time Mikako has a haircut. How this translates into Tobirama and his young nephew, Tsunarama, also receiving one, he doesn't know.

Still, he doesn't bother protesting and is promptly sat on the engawa facing the garden, third in line to be sheared.

"I don't see why I can't work inside until you're ready for me."

Mito smiles beatifically as she fusses with Tsunarama's honey-brown locks. Mikako is happily keeping him distracted. She adores the toddler and apparently finds great amusement in the Senju clan's naming habits. He doesn't understand her, sometimes. It's not like the Uchiha don't have a ridiculous number of shinobi with eye-themed names. Subtle, they are _not_.

"Because I said so. Besides, you need some more sun and fresh air!"

With another cheerful snip, Tsunarama is allowed to go free. Tobirama is _almost_ jealous as the boy cheerfully sets off to watch the fish in the small koi pond. With his light-colored hair and lighter eyes, the child has a striking resemblance to his grandmother on the Senju side. His mischief is all Mito's though.

Critically eyeing the neat low-ponytail keeping his hair in place, Tobirama is grateful that with Mito as his mother, Tsunarama will likely never be a victim to the unfortunate bowl-cut Hashirama had sported at his age.

"Your turn now, Kako-chan! Shall we just trim the ends or should we style it?"

He quickly hides a grimace. There's a small part of him that believes that Mito married Hashirama primarily to have full access to his hair. While she keeps her own hairstyle in dignified but simple buns, she enjoys playing around with others'. He'd once walked into the living room to find her pining his brother's hair up into a needlessly elaborate qitou and had truly been lost for words. Mito liked to tease him often about growing his own hair out so she could take advantage of his unique coloring.

She hadn't brought it up since he'd returned from the dead sporting five months worth of growth and a brand new fear of small spaces.

He'd woken up the day after his reappearance with his hair as short as it had ever been and nobody has spoken anything about it.

"Actually, I was thinking..." Mikako looks hesitant, but determined. He tilts his head, curious. "Can you cut it short like Tobi-nii's?"

The stunned looks on his and Mito's faces must have been an amusing sight, as the child hastily covers her mouth with her hands to stifle a giggle.

"It's just, summer is coming soon and my hair gets all heavy and hot because it's so thick. So, is that okay?"

Mito recovers quickly and smiles immediately.

"Of course it is, Kako-chan! I'll start slowly and we can see how it looks as it gets shorter, okay?"

Mikako looks immensely pleased as more and more of her long, feathery hair is carried away in the breeze. Tobirama watches carefully and notes her occasional smiles in his direction. She's given believable reasons for the request, but something tells him that she'd kept the most important one to herself.

It becomes more difficult to see Madara as her mane grows shorter. Her bangs frame her eyes differently.

He hates that she's picked up on his discomfort to such a degree, but keeps his peace. Mikako is clever and has obviously given thought to this decision. 

In the end, she winds up with a sporty-looking pixie cut that's oddly fitting on her tiny frame. She turns to him, eyes dancing.

"What do you think, Tobi-nii? I could be a mini-Tobi, right?"

He is grateful for this gift as much as he detests himself for needing it. He return the smile with a small one of his own.

"Mito is as talented as always. I fear my brother might think I've turned back into a child when he returns."  
There's a splash and Mito sighs. Tsunarama is happily muddying his clothes while chasing a frog in the shallows of the pond. The young mother looks forlornly at the child who will certainly be fighting a bath very soon despite his utter joy at playing in the water now.  
"I apologize, Tobirama. I'm going to need to take care of that. I can come back later this evening, if you like?"

He nods ruefully and watches her retrieve her offspring, who quickly devotes himself to a tantrum once he is removed from his aquatic playmates. Mikako carefully leans against him as the mother and child make their exit, and contentedly watches the garden with him for some time. 

\-----

That night he dreams of ropes made of black human hair pulling him apart and hands forcing his mouth open until his jaw breaks off and he drowns in a flood of black blood.

\-----

He's grateful that Mikako hadn't been woken by his nightmare. Cleaning up by himself is difficult, but it would be far more humiliating for her to find him in such a state. 

The first time it had happened, Hashirama had found him before he could be rid of the evidence. His brother had been shocked, but had been blessedly quiet as he helped him to the bath before changing the bedding. It was embarrassing to the extreme, but he had been glad not to be alone at the time.

Tobirama tries to be objective. He'd gone from a state of constant starvation and dehydration to being able to eat and drink his fill. His body was simply trying to catch up with his new circumstances and the nightmares only exacerbate the issue.

It doesn't help

He is a sixteen years old genius, a blooded warrior, the second strongest shinobi in his clan. Or at least, he was. Now he's just a _liability_ , wetting the bed like a child and struggling to accomplish the simplest of physical tasks. He dreads the dark of night and the confines of a closed room. He can't sleep anymore unless there's a light source and at least one open window.

Every shinobi instinct he has reviles how he lives now. An assassin would have a laughably easy time taking his head and if that didn't also mean the death of an innocent child, Tobirama wouldn't be too upset.

A shinobi must never show their tears, but his terrors leave him shaking and sobbing at the end of the night.

A shinobi must follow their commander's instructions, but all Hashirama left him with is 'get better, soon, Brother' and Tobirama doesn't know _how_.

A shinobi must never show any weakness, but he is so broken he doesn't know how to be strong again.

\-----

He's just finishing in the bath when he senses the awakening flutter of Mikako's chakra. He grimaces and tries to hurry out, wanting to have had breakfast started by now. It bothers Tobirama to let her cook for him; she's his soulmate, not his servant, and besides, he was fully able to do that, at least-!

His hand slips as he's distracted by his thoughts and he hits the ground hard, promptly discovering a whole new level of shame.

Mikako appears at his side almost immediately and he feels a frustrating amount of deja vu as she reaches out for him. Once again he is naked, helpless, and hurting while she once again comes to his rescue.

She doesn't say anything and he's almost upset with her for it. Red-faced and mortified as she towels him off, he accepts her help as she helps him walk just far enough to sit in the chair he's come to hate. Towel on his lap and soulmate turned away as she assesses the mess he's made ~~again~~ , he slumps in his seat, despairing.

The human frame can only stand so much foreign chakra. By the time he was rescued Tobirama had so many micro-tears in his body from the sustained convulsions that even Hashirama's medical prowess couldn't heal them all at once. They had chosen to save the muscles of his organs, followed by his upper torso and arms, but by the time they'd gotten to his legs, he simply couldn't handle more chakra. The medics had had to wait and waiting had cost him most of his mobility. 

Walking hurt. Standing hurt. 

Tobirama grits his teeth, still unable to meet Mikako's eyes. He was a mess. She didn't deserve a soulmate whose wounds nearly killed her several times over before he'd become a broken burden.

"I'm going back to bed." He's exhausted already and he's been up for barely an hour. Pathetic. Absolutely pathetic.

He wheels himself back to the room Hashirama had adjusted for him, not wanting to see the guilt in her eyes. He hates that she blames herself. He hates that the universe saw fit to chain her to an _invalid_. He...is tired of hating, but doesn't know how to stop.

He pulls himself into his sheet-less bed and half-heartedly smothers himself with the pillow. He tries to imagine The Village, the one that Mikako dreams of with such clarity. The more logical part of him thinks that if peace can be achieved at the cost one shinobi's career, then that outcome is miraculous and should be celebrated. The part of him that has wrapped itself in a cloak of resentment remembers the joyous rush of leaping through trees at high speed, pushing to go ever faster. That part of him is what bites the pillow he holds over his face and struggles not to make a sound as he cries.


	11. Part 11

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> In which Mikako is a fangirl and the Uchiha brothers get a long overdue lesson on physiology from a very angry Hashirama
> 
> \-----

Izuna is _bored_.

One would think that peace negotiations between two clans that had been feuding as long as there's have been would have a bit more danger to them. Or yelling. He had expected yelling.

He keeps his face set in an appropriately serious and alert expression as Madara and that Senju...man? Woman? Izuna thought she looked like a woman, but The Liar had called her 'them', so...It. That's a decent name for a Senju. Anyway, Madara and It were pouring over lists of amendments that the elders on both sides had wanted to sneak into the treaty. The Liar was trying to follow along, but likely failing; everyone knows that Tobirama is the brains behind the Senju clan.

He masterfully withholds his sneer. That Dog can't fight openly in the political sense, either. He was likely off somewhere, tail between his legs and licking his wounds, rightly cowering in fear of the Uchiha's wrath.

He's shaken from his daydreams as there's a break for noon meal. He takes his position at Madara's side as his brother and The Liar shake hands. They return to their tents together and still he holds his tongue.

Madara sighs heavily.

"Still with the silent treatment? You are a _child_ , Izuna."

' _You're the one who is acting childishly_ ' is what he wants to say, ' _This is a pipe dream that you've clung to for years. We should be planning a way to rescue Mikako and recapture The Dog, not sitting around and playing nice with our enemies_ '.

Madara scoffs at his expression and moves some scrolls aside to make space for them at the table. Apparently, he plans to review the list of possible locations for their impossible village while they eat. Izuna frowns meaningfully at him even as Madara thrusts a bento box in his direction.

"Just eat something, will ya?"

Izuna remains unimpressed, but does crack the lid.

His brother had gone to meet The Liar alone, despite his warnings, and returned with tiding of peace. For all that Izuna nearly collapsed in relief at the confirmation that Mikako was blessedly _alive_ , he couldn't help the instinctive revulsion that came with the news. The Uchiha clan was still shaky after being forced to face a hatred that dragged their worst behaviors out and into the open; they were falling for this bullshit idea of equality among clans and...

Izuna is helpless to stop them. His entire family is walking into the jaws of a trap and they're all blind to it.

And he can't do anything about it because the Senju have Mikako.

If Izuna had to choose between his clan and his sister...

The food tastes like ash in his mouth. He sets his chopsticks down, appetite gone.

"...You should really eat more." Madara's watching him, concern badly hidden on his face; Izuna has always been able to read him like a scroll.

If letting his clan traipse happily to their deaths means Mikako will live...

He tries to smile.

"I'm just not very hungry, Brother."

_So be it_.

\-----

Mikako runs a hand through her newly shortened locks and marvels at how strange it feels. That's two lifetimes of long hair against this current cut and it's distracting.

She looks back to her notes with a sigh.

The damage to Tobirama's legs could have been healed in Shikako's time. It would have been a long process, but the therapies had been there.

She just doesn't know them and the lack of knowledge burns in her gut. When Shikamaru lost his arm she had thrown herself into medical seals, but her answer to that problem had been exclusive to Nara techniques. She can't exactly convince Tobirama to get his legs amputated so she can teach his the jutsus of a clan she's never had contact with in this life.

This wasn't supposed to happen, this _wouldn't_ have happened, had she stayed dead like she was supposed to. She needs to fix this, to put things _right-_!

"Sometimes there isn't a solution."

She startles so badly that she knocks her inkwell off the table. A pale hand catches it easily and returns it to its proper place. Tobirama gives her a faint smile at her shock; had she really been so distracted that she missed the sounds of a wheelchair?

The smile grows steadier and she realizes that she'd spoken out loud.

"Care to guess?"

Mikako pouts at him, internally warmed by his presence. He hadn't left his room much since the bathroom debacle that had left bruises over both their chests, and she is relieved to see him again. His chakra feels more settled, as well. There's still sharp edges and bitterness to it, but the all-consuming anguish that had been predominant in it for the last few weeks has lessened.

Speaking of which...

"You've coated your chair with chakra!"

"Aa. It's a fine chakra control exercise." 'He must have been practicing' she realizes. It seems those days alone in his room had not solely because of his brief mental collapse.

He's studying her papers again, absently stealing her pen to make a few corrections and to add more suggestions. Despite everything terrible about the situation they're in, Mikako still feels a giddy thrill shoot through her that _Tobirama Senju_ is reviewing her seals. He's finding them _useful_. _He called some of them revolutionary._

She had squeaked when that had happened, face a blotchy red in joyous embarrassment and stars in her eyes. He had laughed at her, quick and soft, but it had been the first time she'd ever seen him smile.

"But what were you talking about, Tobi-nii?" He glances over at her and takes a moment to recall his original thought. He sits back in his chair with a tired sigh.

"Sometimes there is no solution, Mikako. Sometimes things just can't be fixed with the tools currently available. I...appreciate what you are trying to do for me, but..." The man searches for the right phrase. ' _We really are a perfect pair; he does emotions about as well as I do_ ' Mikako rests her hand over his.

"I don't want to lose you. It is selfish of me, but I've seen to what lengths a shinobi can go when they allow obsession to cloud their minds."

She's fairly certain that he meant 'Uchiha' when he said 'shinobi'. She can't blame him, though; her clan's track record speaks for itself.

"This," He gestures at himself "wasn't your fault. Your brothers' action are on them alone, no matter what reasons they delude themselves with."

"The other day was...difficult. And there will be more like them, I'm sure. I need you to know that whatever happens in the future, you are not to blame for whatever conflicts may arise between our families."

Mikako wants to argue with him, but there's still too much hero-worship in her to work up the nerve. Tobirama has the most unique way of making everything he says sound like immutable facts. The sky is blue, seven-point seals are unreliable at best, and Mikako does not share her brothers' guilt.

She doesn't truly believe that yet and she's sure he can tell, but she takes a deep breath and meets his eyes.

"I can try."

\-----

The peace talks are about wrapped up when Hashirama asks for a private word with him and Izuna. There is some grumbling in the assorted ranks about propriety, but everyone who knows anything about the situation has known this was coming.

They meet in a carefully screened-off room, and Touka adds privacy and silencing seals to the doors. Once the four of them are sat at the table, Hashirama gets straight to the point.

"How many of your people know how to brew the Draught of Agony?"

Izuna stiffens next to him. Madara meets his friend's eye composedly.

"Only the two of us know. The scroll has been destroyed and we have already agreed that its use be banned from here on out. We will not go back on our words."

The staring match lasts several tense moments before Hashirama give a minute nod. Touka speaks up next.

"Did the scroll have anything in it about the effects of extensive use?"

Both of the Uchiha frown and Izuna opts to answer.

"It was not designed for such use. It's original purpose was to keep sacrifices insensate and in pain until the ceremony was completed."

The Senju share a glance that holds an entire conversation. Touka retrieves a scroll and passes it to Madara as Hashirama starts to speak, his voice and face uncharacteristically serious. Even Izuna is paying him sharp attention as the brothers open the scroll.

"Madara. When we spoke at the river you claimed that your actions against Tobirama were brought about because you wanted to keep Mikako-chan safe. You also said that you were unaware of your actions for the last several months he was with you."

"If this peace is going to work, you both need to understand what you nearly caused."

Tobirama Senju's latest medical file lays before them and Madara feels a deep discomfort. He has no love for the man, but having such dangerous information on open display feels perverse. His eyes scan the information, but he is no healer. The technical jargon is frustrating.

Luckily, Hashirama is more than willing to simplify the problem.

"Prolonged seizures are extremely damaging to the body. The two of you are lucky that Tobirama is your sister's soulmate." Izuna glares, opening his mouth for a cutting reply, but Hashirama ignores him easily. He taps at various parts of the file to note where the information is located.

"Tobirama has perfect chakra control. Once the seizures began, he instinctively coated his internal organs with chakra to protect them. This was done even despite the suppression seals he was subjected to while in the cultist's captivity and your own."

"And?" Izuna's lips are twisted in a sneer and Madara can visibly see Hashirama decide that he's broken the wrong brother's nose. "Are you going to give us the information or are you going to tell us about how amazing your little brother is?"

The room is silent as Hashirama's Killer Intent briefly lashes out, his eyes glaring holes into Izuna's suddenly frozen body. Madara is morbidly amused. His little brother has never really faced Hashirama at his deadliest; this is the first time he's truly understood what kind of monster this Senju is.

Hashirama's tone is flat.

"Seizures cause micro-tears in muscles. Extended seizures cause permanent scarring on those muscles."

"The heart is a muscle."

Madara's stomach drops at the realization.

"There are muscles in the stomach and intestines. In the very veins that carry the blood through a body."

"If my brother were not who he is, your sister would be dead a hundred times over by your own actions."

His hands are shaking. Izuna has gone white and is swaying on his feet.

_What had they done._

Seeing that his message had been received, Hashirama continues. Madara wants to shout, to stop him from uttering any more damning words. _Oh Sage, they could have killed her!_

"By the time Mikako-chan rescued Tobirama, he was at his strength's end. When they arrived in the Senju Compound, his body was already going into multiple organs failure. The Draught's ability to block the soulbond from sharing the micro-tears would never have helped her if his heart had stopped."

The world is spinning. Madara is frozen, taking in the information but unable to more than imagine his little sister. If she hadn't followed Izuna, if she hadn't refused to leave Tobirama, if they had continued to force the potion on him...

He can see his little sister's body falling like a puppet with its strings cut. _Would it have hurt_? Would they have even understood what had happened? And more chillingly, would they have _cared_ , since the scroll had been so deeply influencing their minds.

"I'm telling you this because you need to understand what you owe my brother. His actions not only saved himself and Mikako, but prevented the both of you from unintentionally murdering your sister."

He flinches. A strangled noise escapes Izuna's throat.

Hashirama waits. Madara braces himself for more.

"Tobirama is going to be a part of this village we're creating; he and Mikako have given me their permission to share this knowledge with you. If you doubt it, you are free to have your own medics verify the information. I trust that you will keep this as quiet as possible."

"Our clan's medics and I were able to heal his internal damage and his upper body, but by the time we were finished with that the damage to his legs had become permanent."

"You've crippled my brother, Madara. Our clans will soon be moving to a new area and building a village of peace together. Tobirama will be working there, as well. I have no objections to the two of you meeting with Mikako again _if_ she wishes it, but I will insist that you avoid being alone with Tobirama. You have cost him enough already."


	12. Part 12

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> In which there is a reunion, a conversation, and something that might be the start of a revelation.

\-----

Hashirama is restless. He paces the length of the shelter he'd grown with his Mokuton, chattering away to his companions about anything and everything that pops into his mind. The land that would soon house the village of his dreams is right outside the door; the first wave of workers and craftsmen had started construction weeks ago. He and his family had come ahead of the rest of their clan in order to be certain that the uniquely shinobi building specifications were being met. Reinforced roofs, streets that bend and twist into seals for protections, training grounds; no one had ever before attempted a project that was so vast and unusual.

Mito is distracted. She has only just finished dealing with one of the civilian foremen who hadn't had much courtesy for a woman who had a child on her hip. Tsunarama's minder was still traveling with the bulk of the Senju clan and Mito had happily taken the opportunity to bring her darling son along with her to the administrative center's construction site. It would be a good for him to see this new world being brought to life. The foreman had been more concerned with asking her where her husband was and whether he knew that she was meddling. She had had several words for him, many of which she later instructed Tsunarama to never repeat.

Mikako is nervous. She shifts in her seat, responding absently to Hashirama's words and running her fingers over the embroidery of her new kimono. She had turned seven while living with the Senju clan, had celebrated her first birthday with her soulmate. She'd played the part of an excited kid well; only Tobirama knew that she was hiding woe. It was her first birthday without at least one of her brothers there to smile at her. Despite everything that had happened, Mikako has greatly missed them.

Tobirama is terrified. Madara and Izuna had arrived ahead of the rest of the Uchiha clan, just as it was agreed weeks before. He can sense their chakra signatures easily as they make their way to where his little family waits. He knows Mikako would not blame him if he excused himself. He knows Hashirama would never begrudge him a moment of weakness. Mito probably thinks he's a masochistic _moron_ for insisting on facing the men who had tortured him. His hands are folded in his lap and his expression is deceptively calm. Tobirama will fight this fear. If he runs away now he will never forgive himself.

This is his home, too. He will not hide away behind closed screens like some noble lord or bastard child.

\-----

Madara and Izuna are welcomed into the temporary home. Izuna is watchful and wary, taking in the exits as Hashirama leads them into the meeting room. He is on edge, excitement and trepidation dog his every step. Mikako is here; she has finally asked to see her brothers again. _Izuna must not fuck this up_. Even if all he wants to do is snatch her away from the clan that had killed their brothers, wants to hide her somewhere safe and protected from the aftermath of this mad scheme their brother has fallen prey to.

He follows Madara into the room and hears a breathy and achingly familiar voice.

"Mada-nii! Zuzu-nii!"

She's taller, with her hair cut ridiculously short, but that's his sister running towards him with hers arms outstretched. He and Madara move as one to meet her, scooping her into their arms as the sheer _relief_ of seeing her alive and whole rushes through them. There is a fierce, glorious moment where he revels in the feeling. His family is _here_ , complete once again, and he doesn't care that their mortal enemies are in the same room as them.

Their reunion isn't long by necessity; all too soon Mikako gives them a final squeeze before releasing her hold. He can allow this. Izuna make a herculean effort to set her back down and somehow manages it. Reality and propriety begin to reassert themselves. He tries to ignore them just a little bit longer, shamelessly making Madara go through the standard pleasantries by himself.

Mikako raises an eyebrow at him, fully aware of what he's doing and wholly unimpressed. He sneaks a grin at her. She rolls her eyes.

_Sage_ , but he's missed her.

He hears his name and tunes into the conversation, finally deigning to give his attention to the Senju in the room.

The Liar, Hashirama, looks like he's teared up at the touching reunion. He is currently speaking (or what passes for it) with Madara. Izuna quickly diverts his attention elsewhere. He neither understands nor wants to understand _their_ strange relationship. It might be infectious.

The Woman catches his eyes next, with her vibrant hair and blood red lip paint. There is a fire in her eyes that surprises him with its intensity. He watches her gaze flick over to Mikako and it softens in fondness. He finds himself reluctantly classifying her as 'Potentially Tolerable'. None of the Uchiha women have managed to make a notable impression on his sister; this woman may be useful as a role model of sorts. As a former Uzumaki, she would undoubtedly be able to assist Mikako in her fuuinjutsu studies, as well.

He is stalling.

Tobirama is the sole reason his sister didn't die for Izuna's bitter sense of vengeance.

He still doesn't know what his feelings about that are, beyond confusing.

Casually, he lets his awareness wander to the older man. Red eyes briefly meet his own before instinctively darting away. One doesn't easily unlearn old habits and Izuna has always been eager to throw wickedly clever genjustu around in their fights. He can see the beating pulse in Tobirama's neck, the clench and unclench of his jaw.

He is afraid.

Izuna almost sneers at him out of habit, but reigns himself in. He needs to be _good_. For Mikako's sake. He needs to _try_.

He'd rather ask the albino if he remembers begging him not to put him back in the casket. He wants to pick at the scabs over the Senju's wounds and break him into pieces again. It's almost a compulsion to keep digging, to force his reactions and watch him _shatter_.

He opens his mouth and Mikako lets go of his hand.

He startles out of the fantasy and refocuses on his sister. He watches out of the corner of her eyes and she gives him a stern look.

He sighs, resigning himself to keep an eye of things.

For now.

\-----

Madara holds Mikako's hand so, so gently as they return to the campsite set up for the incoming Uchiha clan. Hashirama had grown a house for the Clan Head, but the rest would make do with tents and bedrolls for the short time before the village is habitable. 

His sister's hand is so small and warm in his own.

Whether or not he was in control of his body, the last time his hand had touched Mikako was to strike her away.

\-----

Izuna's grip is tight and his body is steely as the ninja wire their clan prefers to use. He counts the interaction with the Senju to have been successful primarily because he had kept his mouth firmly shut. 

He keeps sneaking glances at her, searching for any signs of mistreatment, any reason for him to prove his devotion to her with fire and sword.

It's all he knows how to do, anymore. Even before this catastrophe began there had been no time for him to spend with her. The contracts had been unabating and a shinobi of his strength could hardly pause in his duties to sit and read with a child.

\-----

Mikako held her brothers' hands and decided that all three of them were idiots.

The awkward silence between them felt deafening as they entered the house; no one seemed to know what to say or where to start. There was an discussion that needed to be had between them, surely one of many, but none of them wanted to bring it up.

Privately, Mikako lamented the fact that she was technically the oldest of the siblings, even if her brothers didn't know it. It meant that she had to be the adult in this situation, as much as it irked her.

"So! I got my hair cut!"

_Oh Sage, she is so bad at this_.

Izuna whirls around from where he was kicking his sandals into the genkan. He points an accusing finger with the speed of a coiled snake.

"They cut your hair! It's so short that it's a travesty! What the Hell do they think they're playing at?!"

There's a groan of utter exasperation from Madara as he drops his head into his hands. Mikako is suddenly very sympathetic.

"Zuzu, have you been like this the _whole_ time I was gone?" She sighs before leading the way into the kitchen. She had made sure to stock some essentials before her family had arrived and she refused to continue this conversation without tea. If she wasn't currently seven, she'd be demanding something stronger.

Her brothers follow her like a pair of particularly dour ducks, Izuna still grumbling about perceived insults and Madara distressingly quiet.

She chooses to ignore Izuna until he calms down and retrieves the tea things, scowling slightly. Being reborn in this era meant that anything 'instant' was a pipe dream. It was a well-known fact in their household that she considers the act of making tea a chore.

It's with obvious habit rather than conscious decision that Madara takes over. She thanks him with a smile and quickly sets out some snacks. Savory senbei with nori for Izuna, boiled azuki beans for Madara, and karinto for herself. The treats bring a smile to her face as she remembers Touka's teasing when they had made them. They had been very amused at the idea that an Uchiha would stress bake.

She didn't, not really, but she'd grown up alongside an Akimichi not long in the past and knew that comforting food could be helpful during stressful times. 

Izuna has grumpily ended his diatribe, irritated that neither sibling was paying attention. 

\-----

All too soon, they find themselves seated at the table, silence once again the loudest thing in the room. Mikako takes a fortifying drink before channeling her inner Yoshino. 

She sets her cup down with a small clink and looks directly at her brothers. They straighten their backs automatically, attention on her.

"I love you both, but what you did to my soulmate is unacceptable. I expected better of you."

She raises a hand to stall interruptions and stares at Izuna until he shuts his mouth.

"We could sit here and revisit those months, but it would get us nowhere. What this all boils down to is that the two of you deliberately initiated the torture of a prisoner for a nonexistent crime and in doing so you nearly killed both him and me."

She raises her glass again to take a sip, delicately, as Mito had taught her. The insightful woman had gone to great lengths to help Mikako hash out a rough plan for this conversation. Or lecture, rather. Mito had been firm about not letting the men try to counter her until after the hard facts were on the table. Feelings of betrayal and anger could come after; the baseline of the discussion must be an uncompromisable truth.

Throat whetted, she continues.

"Nonexistent, because the injuries you blamed him for putting on me were through no fault of his own; the soulbond itself created our wounds. He did not seek it out and once he realized its existence he made what allowances he safely could given the violent state of the world."

Mikako nods slightly, indicating that she has finished. ' _Keep it short, keep is simple. Otherwise I'm going to start yelling_.' Accusations, no matter how true they are, would do none of them any good right now. Predictably, Izuna is the first to respond, his tone pleading.

"We thought we were keeping you safe, Mikako; we had no idea that the potion could have killed you. We-"

" _Enough._ "

Madara finally speaks, face resigned.

"Izuna, such things are excuses. Mikako is right; Tobirama is no innocent, but in this he is blameless. He was at our mercy and we abused him in a way even our ancestors would recoil at. We have shamed ourselves and our clan with our actions." He meets Mikako's eyes steadily and she is relieved to see them clear of the madness that had haunted her nightmares. "I intend to extend a personal apology to your soulmate, Sister, when he is of a mind to receive me."

Izuna is lost, his gaze flitting between his siblings. A sullen acceptance slowly creeps over his face. Mikako knows that he is neither convinced nor regretful of his cruelties, but...it's a start. She's exhausted just thinking about what kind of trouble he could cause if he wasn't willing to at least _fake_ contrition.

The heavy atmosphere over them is beginning to relax; she should probably turn things to a less controversial subject. It's been months since they've spoken, surely she could find something to discuss!

The silence stretches, beginning to become strained.

"Do you...get along with him? Tobirama, I mean."

Apparently Madara is sharing her difficulties. Still, he was the one to bring her soulmate back up; perhaps it won't be as taboo as she had thought it would be to speak of him.

"I do! We talk so often and he's really amazing with seals! We've been working on some really interesting theories..."

\-----

Mikako is...happy. Excited. Her eyes are gleaming and her face is flushed as she describes how she, Tobirama, and the Uzumaki woman have been trying to set up a wholly new sort of barrier seals for the village. The technical jargon flies over his head. He understands maybe one in three words.

Izuna's sister is animated and exuberant in a way that he has never seen her before and...

Maybe. Maybe there is a small part of him that is beginning to understand what his bitter heart wants to continue to deny. Mikako is glowing. Confident.

He thinks of her in the Uchiha Compound, brilliant and bored and lonely for someone who could keep up with her quicksilver mind. He had always thought that she was happy there, content to play with the other children and create new seals by herself. 

Seeing her like this, he realizes that she had never truly been joyous. Even with himself and Madara, she had had no true equal among her blood family, no one to challenge her or inspire her.

Meeting Tobirama had allowed her to shine.

Perhaps, that was what was meant all along? That soulmates did not simply share their wounds, but also their triumphs?

He hears Mikako sing her soulmate's praises and...

He remembers watching Tobirama weep mindlessly, the light gone from his eyes as he is lost in pain.

For the first time, Izuna feels a trickle of unease down his back. _Had he been wrong, after all_?


	13. Part 13

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> In which there is a party and not much gets done.
> 
> (Warnings for mentions of miscarriages and stillborns, some discussion about sex, and Madara's low key panic about his months of amnesia.)

\-----

Tobirama turns seventeen the same day his nephew turns three and four days after the Village was given its name. 

_Konohagakure_ , the Village Hidden in the Leaves.

Really, it was almost unbearably poetic considering the acres of forest surrounding the site. He'd thought Madara had been attempting a joke when he had suggested it. Maybe he had been joking, but _Mikako_ of all people had pounced on the title with such enthusiasm that no one could bear to deny her it. 

Whatever the reason, Konoha was christened and Hashirama had decided that a celebration was in order, one that coincided suspiciously with the birthdays of two of his favorite people. Tobirama was not amused by his brother's histrionics at _finally being allowed to throw a real party for you, Tobirama, please_ , but he had refrained from shutting the idea down completely. Honestly, Hashirama has attempted to make Tobirama's birthday a ridiculously overblown event since they were _children_ ; it should be no surprise that he had jumped at the chance. He consoles himself at the defeat of sensibility that Tsunarama will certainly be thrilled at the bright decorations and festive atmosphere.

Tobirama himself had managed to argue away his own presence at the village-wide party; he was still loathe to be seen in public while chair-bound and even Hashirama had understood that forcing the issue would be a poor present. 

' _It's not as if I'm missing much, either_ ' he thinks to himself as he settles himself onto the engawa, tea in hand, chair temporarily abandoned for the sake of faking a sense of normalcy. Between one breath and the next the young man loosens the tight control of his senses, the village lighting up with thousands of little flames within his mind's eye. It's with easy practice that he finds those that are his, content to feel their happiness and excitement fluttering through their chakra.

He takes a drink and allows himself to relax, knowing that his family is at peace.

\-----

Mikako smiles to herself as her soulmate's chakra brushes against her own. She had been worried when Tobirama had insisted on staying in the home he shared with his family, but it seems that he is enjoying himself in his own way. She's glad for it; while he hasn't had a relapse in his mental state, she knows that being around her family wears terribly on him. She tries her best to go between them and neither Madara nor Izuna are ever alone with him, but still. Sometimes after they meet he opts to dictate his paperwork to one of his beleaguered office workers rather than get close to the black ink. He hides his stresses with a frustrating ease.

Another cousin calls for her and Mikako pushes the thoughts away. The Uchiha clan is still relieved to have her 'returned' to them, even if she spends just as much time with the Senju nowadays. Still, during an event like this one, each one of her family members seem to have decided to have a personal chat with her.

Mikako fixes on a smile and responds to the slightly older boy who was waving her over. Izuna's hand is clutched mercilessly in her own; if he is going to laugh at her about being forced into the role of social butterfly, then he can suffer alongside her.

\-----

Mito huffs in amusement as her husband manages to pester the Uchiha Clan Head into running off to hold a private a drinking contest. Or avoid their separate sets of Elders. It's difficult to tell, sometimes. ' _Really, Tsunarama acts more mature than those two, sometimes_ ' she thinks as she gazes at her son; her impossible baby, already three years old and leading her around the festival with an sense of courteous determination. Apparently, three years old is an impressive number, in his mind, and he means to prove his worldly airs.

She keeps her head high, ignoring three Senju Elders who were looking for someone to fuss at. They were some of those were had counseled Hashirama to take a concubine after the second miscarriage, had even pushed for a second wife after their daughter was stillborn. Hashirama had refused them at every turn and they had never forgiven him for it.

It is of no matter, now. Those withered prunes were of Butsuma's time and with the formation of Konoha, Butsuma's time has officially passed.

\-----

Hashirama sneaks himself and Madara into a gambling den, where they play and drink until his purse is empty. He is giddy, riding high on the village around them and the people all celebrating together. Madara grumbles and snipes with sharp comments, but he can see the softness in his friend's face as they pass a games booth crowded with children. There is cheering from a nearby wrestling ring and the scent of roasted meats and fried foods is heavy in the night's air.

He throws his arm around Madara's shoulder, incapable of reigning in his joy.

" _Look_ at them, Madara! Our clans, our _families_ are at peace, just as we dreamed of! Can you believe it?"

He totters as he gestures, all but collapsing on the other man in his state of revelry. He can almost _feel_ Madara rolling his eyes, but doesn't bother to correct his weight. Hashirama's face hurts from grinning and he continues on, trusting his friend to lead him to one of the outdoor tables set up for party-goers.

"You know, Tsunarama is _three_ , now! He's so sweet, Madara, and now he can _stay_ sweet for longer. Doesn't even have to be a shinobi is he doesn't want to!"

"I highly doubt that, you great oaf." Madara lets him slide onto the bench with a groan. "We haven't changed the world _that_ much."

Hashirama giggles and Madara looks askance at him.

"Tobirama would argue with you about that. Mikako-chan probably would, too! Those two are always talking about what the 'societal impact' one thing or another might have. Like...like what if the world didn't have soulmates? Or if the Bijuu could be allied with! Or..." He trails off, distracted by the tempura that had appeared at his elbow. When had Madara even left to get him some?

Truly, his friend is a generous man. Hashirama digs in, suddenly feeling starved.

"Che, not even a 'thank you'? Greedy bastard, leave some for me!"

He is sorely tempted to hold the food over his head and out of Madara's reach just on principle, but decides to be magnanimous. Mito would be so proud of him, not using his power of height for evil! Besides, his darling wife is much more fun to tease. Her face turns all red like a tomato whenever she asks him to retrieve things from the higher shelves, it's so cute! He hopes she never finds out that he's the one who puts her scrolls and favorite snacks up there to begin with.

Face flushed, he tries to redirect his thoughts from his fierce little wife's embarrassed and angry face. The way her lips pout unconsciously, looking up at him even as her eyes twinkle with fondness...

\-----

Madara finishes off the tempura as he watches Hashirama's expression with morbid curiosity. The man's face is bright red and the dopiest looking smile is plastered across it. 

He decides that he really, _really_ doesn't want to know.

He looks around with a light sigh, noting the many merrymakers who are moving past them to a more open area. ' _The fireworks must be starting soon_ ' he realizes through his own drink-fogged mind. He feels a flash of annoyance at the fact; the overgrown tree at his side is in no state to be left alone, but Madara isn't thrilled with the idea of dragging his stupidly large friend all the way to where Mito and Tsunarama are probably seated. Sage only knows how the fool will surely embarrass himself, and Madara by proximity, on the way there!

With another roll of his eyes, Madara stands and begins to bully the behemoth into doing so as well; he can take Hashirama back home easier than his wife and child likely could.

The man slumps his weight onto Madara's shoulder again and they start on their way. ' _This would be so much easier if he stopped talking_ ' the beleaguered Uchiha complains to himself. And then out loud; why should he suffer in silence when his literal burden is right there?

"If you don't stop rhapsodizing about how 'your wife's petite figure hides her delicious curves', I _will_ set you on fire."

The bastard laughs at him.

"You know, you should get married, too! You're always so _grouchy_ , Madara! A lovely wife of your own will set you right!" Madara can feel his eyelid twitching. He is never going to drink with Hashirama again.

"I get enough of that from my clan Elders, don't _you_ dare start! I have no interest in taking a wife or having a concubine or any of that!"

Hashirama looks at him with a puzzled frown as they stagger their way into the Senju District. Madara privately bemoans the distance to the Clan Head's home. Horrifyingly, the Senju's expression clears up in a look of understanding and Madara braces himself for whatever drivel is about to barrage him long-suffering patience.

"Oh! _Ohhh_. I get it, don't worry. It's your business, anyway, so forget I brought it up." He shoots Hashirama a startled look, not expecting his exuberant friend to back off of a subject with such ease. Hashirama grins back at him. "Tobirama hates it when our Elders start pushing him, too. Especially now that he's met his soulmate! She's only seven, you know, and he's always been paranoid about how much the soulbond might transfer."

It takes Madara longer than it probably should to understand what he other man is implying. When he does, he chokes on air and nearly sends them both tumbling. When he recovers himself he manages to respond, voice unnaturally high "Do you mean to tell me that if Tobirama has...relations...with someone, my little sister might _feel_ it?!"

"Well, that was his _worry_ , but they're both pretty sure that nothing of that sort would transfer either way. Unless one of their partners was rough..." Madara feels faint at the casual way Hashirama is discussing Mikako's potential future love life. His baby sister...no _way_ is any man going to be laying a hand on her! Not ever! Not going to happen! 

There's a garbled noise from his throat and Hashirama seems to recall who exactly he's talking with. "N-Not that it matters at all, Madara! Tobirama's been taking a hormone suppressant since he realized he had a soulmate, so he wouldn't ever-!"

" _Stop talking about our siblings' sex lives._ " Madara hisses the words, fully prepared to sear this memory out of his mind if it ever becomes possible. He didn't need this information. He definitely didn't need the realization that his sister might one day be interested in people _that way_. He makes a mental note to monitor her and Tsunarama's interactions, just in case. 

Madara _definitely_ didn't need to know about Tobirama's nonexistent sex life, even if he can admit to being slightly grateful to hear that the Senju had thought ahead to such a degree.

Tobirama had not yet agreed to receive Madara's personal apology. There's a sick pit of fear in his belly that he hasn't been able to shed since he had woken from his possessed state. The many and varied atrocities he might have committed upon the younger man during his 'Blank Period' have kept him awake at night. This conversation has only added to the list of unforgivable actions he might be responsible for.

It makes him angry to think about. Angry that Tobirama still refuses to meet him in a more private setting than with their brothers and Mikako there to hear his questions. Angry at himself for being angry that _his victim_ doesn't want to dig through those particular memories for the mere possibility of assuaging a guilt he might fully deserve.

Mood firmly perturbed by the direction his thoughts have taken him, Madara finally reaches Hashirama's house and opens the door as the first firework of the night lights up the sky behind him.


	14. Part 14

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> In which things are dramatic, a conversation is had, and there may be horror.
> 
> (Warning for discussions of sexual assault)

\-----

It wasn't that Tobirama hadn't been aware that Madara and Hashirama were returning early from the festival. Their combined chakra glow was nearly blinding and had a tendency to blot out most other people's lights. To that extent, he had already been in the process of wheeling himself to the front entrance of the house, resignedly preparing to take his thoroughly pickled brother off of Madara's hands.

He may not like the man, but he can be gracious enough to help him take care of Hashirama. That the Uchiha genuinely cares for Tobirama's brother is one of his few redeeming features.

What he hadn't been prepared for was his own reaction to the bright ( _ ~~sobrighttoobright~~_ ) flash of light that accompanied the older man's arrival, nor the crackling and booming of the fireworks.

The low lighting of his brother's house fades into full darkness and Tobirama's body moves without his permission, racing towards the light that was his first chance of freedom. His legs scream in protest at the weight upon them and the cultist's shocked face registers a moment before he throws himself past the man, stumbling down the ramp that...shouldn't be there? He had thought he was being held underground. The world is spinning as a flash of bright green bursts over the sky, startling a garbled cry that wrenches it's way out of his throat. He can see the sky, but there are too many stars, more than he knows. Everything is alien and he cannot imagine how he will find his way _home_.

There's noise behind him and he stumbles forward. He'd killed one of his captors the last time, hadn't tried this time, couldn't stop moving or else he would fall and never move again. There's a coffin in his mind's eye, buried under the floorboards of an abandoned shrine. It reeks of fear and pain and he _can't go back-_!

Something grabs his shirt and yanks him backwards. Tobirama staggers, his legs collapsing beneath him. His arms are pinned to his sides as his attacker wraps him in a hold that brings them both to the ground. He throws his head back, trying to break the nose of whoever it is he's being held to, but it only hits the sternum, judging by the grunt he receives.

A low, shaking moan escapes him.

\-----

Tobirama keens like a beaten dog and Madara struggles to keep his hold. This was _not_ how he had expected the night to end.

He tightens his grip and waits for the albino man to return to himself. This is hardly the first time he has had to restrain someone suffering under the war-fetters, but never before had he felt so awkward doing so. He is not unaware that his own self is likely the cause of this attack and the sheer irony of the situation is not lost on him.

He considers flaring his chakra; Mikako would immediately send assistance and any other sensor would likely check in on the situation, but...Tobirama is a proud man. It will be bad enough on him that Madara had witnessed such an episode. No, even while drunk Madara can handle this on his own. He can keep the Senju from accidentally harming himself and Mikako for however long this spell lasts.

Madara keeps his bleary gaze focused on the sky, watching the fireworks show continue to paint the night in explosive colors, and does his best to ignore the man shaking in his arms, trying to afford him some measure of privacy.

\-----

Tobirama slides out of his waking terror within moments after the finale of the show. The cloths binding him turn into arms keeping him from thrashing about wildly. The smothering darkness of the casket retreats until the glimmering stars and faint trails of drifting smoke from the celebrations can be seen once again.

The steady wildfire at his back doesn't change, though.

Humiliation courses through him as he realizes what must have occurred.

"Fuck."

"How succinct."

The arms withdraw and Tobirama rolls himself off of Madara. Of all the people to have witnessed one of his 'incidents', Madara would be slotted neatly below Izuna on his list. The universe itself seems to delight in denying him even that request, though. He wipes his face quickly and is relieved to note that at least he had not cried.

He takes in his surroundings and grimaces at the lack of his chair. It is not the first time his mind had forced his broken body to run out from the confines of the walls; crawling his way back into the house would always be his most detested undertaking.

And now he has an audience in the man who had crippled him in the first place. Tobirama gives some serious thought to demanding that the Uchiha go wake Hashirama, but ultimately decides that his older brother would raise more of a fuss than he can tolerate at the moment.

He begins his trek, ignoring the weight of Madara's gaze. The sooner he can reach his bed, the easier it will be to pretend that this never happened.

\-----

Madara frowns as he brushes dirt and grass off his robes, eying the Senju critically. He could leave. Right now. Just walk away and allow Tobirama to make his way back into his home under his own power.

But the fireworks show has ended and party-goers will be returning home soon. Leaving Tobirama to be discovered by Mito and Tsunarama would likely be upsetting to all involved...and Mikako would be disappointed in him. He'd sworn that he would be a person worthy of her love.

"Knock that off, Senju. Let me get you back into your damn chair so I can drag your brother to his room before his wife and child find his sorry ass."

Tobirama send a dirty look his way, before reluctantly nodding his assent. Madara scoops the long-limbed man into his arms, the both of them studiously ignoring the situation as firmly as possible.

"This is familiar..." Tobirama is pale and tense as he murmurs the words, and Madara recalls that the last time he had held the man this way was during his retrieval from the Jashinist cult. He mumbles his agreement and covers the short distance in a few strides, carefully nudging open the door and stepping over Hashirama's snoring form. He really should not be surprised that the inebriated man hadn't woken when Madara had dropped him to the floor; the man really couldn't hold his drink.

\-----

As he settles himself into his chair, Tobirama finds himself grateful that he had swallowed his pride and allowed himself to be carried into the house. Even now he can sense his family making their way back home; at his current speed, it is extremely unlikely that he would have managed to return to the house before they arrived.

Madara nods stiffly at him and he returns it before he maneuvers himself toward the kitchen; he needs something to settle his nerves and ease the shaking in his hands. He can hear Madara's grunt as he pulls Hashirama over his shoulder and half-drags the man to his room, grumbling complaints all the while. He keeps a careful tab on the older man's chakra, following it through the house while retrieving the teapot from a low cupboard and setting it upon the stove.

He raises an eyebrow at the man when Madara joins him in the kitchen.

"Don't you have somewhere else to be?" Tobirama is amused to see the Uchiha bristle at his tone, but quickly frowns at the answer.

"I need to apologize. To you."

"And now is the best time?" He's mocking him, but there is a thread of unease in Tobirama's voice. He had been avoiding the apology. Had not wanted to hear Madara's contrition for his immutable actions. There is a great deal of anger in Tobirama and it would do no one any good to trigger its release.

The water is boiling. He sets the tea to steep.

"You seem to take issue with the word 'No'. Are you really going to force this upon me?"

The silence makes him look up and he is startled to see how utterly pale Madara has gone. Tobirama opens his mouth to inquire about exactly how much the man had been drinking this night, but is cut off. The Uchiha stumbles forward and falls to his knees, hands gripping the arms of the wheelchair. Tobirama recoils at the sudden proximity and the almost panicked expression in the man's face.

" _Did I?_ "

\-----

"Did you what?"

Madara struggles to keep his sharingan inactive as he stares at Tobirama's dumbfounded face. He wants the surety of picking up every tell, he wants the threat to coerce the truth out of the younger man.

The reflexive horror in Tobirama's wide red eyes wounds something within him. Self-condemnation writhes in his chest. _He had caused that_. Even during battles, Tobirama had never shown fear. Had never shown much expression at all, truly. His composure in the face of hardship was nearly as legendary as the man himself.

And now that hard-won willpower and self-control is rent asunder, torn to pieces by Madara's hands. This stitched together facsimile of the Senju's former restraint is ragged, leaving him vulnerable when pressed unexpectedly.

Madara doesn't need to like the man to regret his actions. Every glimpse of Mikako's now-reclusive soulmate only amplifies the crimes done against him and presses the guilt further into Madara's mind.

He has so much grief for his actions, but he _needs to know_ what occurred during his possession and Tobirama was the only witness. They are alone now; this may be Madara's only opportunity.

"You are aware that I do not recall the majority of the time you spent as my captive, correct? You are the only one who can tell me what happened during that time. _Did I force you_? Did I... _touch_ you with intent?" He struggles to say the words, to risk the confirmation that would wreck havoc on his already tenuous self-regard "Dammit Senju, _did I rape you?_ "

\-----

Tobirama blinks.

He blinks again.

Madara is still there, angry and terrified and demanding an answer.

"No, you never...That." Stuttering confusion is a rare state for Tobirama to be in. "Not when I was cognizant, and there were no injuries of that nature, so it's extremely unlikely anything like that transpired."

The relief overwhelming the Uchiha is staggering. Tobirama realizes very suddenly that this question must have been eating at Madara's mind for months now. He's not exactly sympathetic, but he can understand the stress _not knowing_ must have caused him.

But still.

"...Was that a possibility? The most that you did was some semblance of a kiss the day Mikako found me, but that was less sexual and more trying to force liquid pain down my throat."

Tobirama watches Madara flinch, curiosity outweighing his unease of the situation.

"Would that have been standard for your clan, to do such things to prisoners?"

" _No!_ " The older man jerks to his feet, glaring now and baring his teeth at the thought. "We are not _monsters_ , we have never-!

"So then you were concerned about the possibility for a different reason. Something to do with you and me in particular? Perhaps I fit your 'type', or you discovered a kink at some point during my imprisonment..." Madara's face is blotchy with rage, relief, and mortification. The swiftly shifting emotions seem to be giving him some sort of whiplash.

For his own part, Tobirama isn't sure what to do with the information. He's gone out of his way to avoid romantic or physical entanglements, hadn't had any interest in reading the sort of novels that feature such in-depth attachments, hadn't paid much mind to the dramatics and gossip of his fellows beyond what he could learn to apply to his shinobi skills. This was strange. New. Slightly disturbing to consider.

\-----

Madara presses a hand over his eyes and groans.

"No, look. I just...needed to be sure. I have _no memory_ of several months, even though my clansmen have told me that I had activated my sharingan several times. The fact that I was also spending an inordinate amount of time with an internee was...concerning."

The conversation has quickly gotten out of hand and even though he is deeply relieved to learn that his worst fears had not come to pass, he is equally ready to _stop talking about it_.

Tsunarama becomes his new favorite Senju as the child bursts into the house, excitedly calling for his uncle.

Still looking vaguely confused and distressingly deep in thought, Tobirama wheels out to meet him, leaving Madara alone in the kitchen with the forgotten tea.

He scowls at it. It's probably ruined by now.

"It is my understanding that you were not to be alone with him." The voice is sweet and quietly cheerful, but Madara can feel his hair standing on end as he turns to face a deceptively calm looking Mito.

"I just brought Hashirama home." The truth sounds like a feeble excuse, but he meets her eyes squarely.

She smiles.

"I appreciate your assisting my honorable husband. The hour is late, though, and I must ask you to leave." It was excessively formal, but not very polite. Madara nods woodenly.

"My apologies for staying overlong; I bid you goodnight."

He's not running away. If he goes out the front door, Tsunarama will undoubtedly want to speak to him, and Tobirama would be right there, and Mito would be standing behind him, staring.

He leaves through the kitchen window and doesn't look back.


	15. Part 15

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> In which a gift is given and an introduction is made.
> 
> (Last chapter, my auto-correct decided 'hroror' meant 'humor', which led to some disappointment and a lot of confusion considering the topics involved in said chapter.)
> 
> (I don't like disappointing people even if it's by accident, so...let's have a lighter chapter, neh?)

\-----

" _ **Madara!**_ "

Mikako fumes at Madara the next morning after prying some of the details of the previous night out of him. He drops his head to the table with a groan, wishing that his darling sister hadn't inherited quite so much of their mother's sense of righteousness or her ability to lecture. She is as furious with him as he is with himself. ' _What in the seven hells had he been thinking, confronting Tobirama like that?!_ '

He glares at Izuna, who is keeping his face entirely blank even as his shoulders tremble with suppressed laughter. Of course his little brother would find it hilarious to watch Madara cower under the tongue-lashing of a petite seven year old girl.

\-----

She is still fuming when she sets off toward the Senju District for her month's stay with her second family. Really, her brother is a brilliant man, but sometimes his actions can only be described as _moronic_.

Hashirama is approaching the gates to the Uchiha compound as Mikako makes her exit, looking composed and wanting to 'invite' his old friend to an early morning sparring match. She gleefully sends him on his way, being sure to mention her poor brother's hangover.

It's good to know that she isn't alone in her umbrage.

\-----

Tobirama can't stop the groan that escapes him as he senses Mikako's riled up chakra making a bee-line towards his office at the newly built Hokage Tower. Mito has the gall to look amused at him.

As much as he loved his family, both by blood and by bond, they could be smothering in their protectiveness. Yes, he had had a bad episode the night previous. Yes, he had been alone with Madara Uchiha. Yes, they had conversed about a disturbing topic. (The topic itself he very definitely did not share, no matter how they pressed him)

That doesn't mean that he needs to have someone just 'happen' to be with him at all times.

Hashirama had stayed with him through breakfast before sauntering off to request a 'spar' with Madara. That, Tobirama had expected. What he hadn't anticipated was Mito's insistence on reviewing village security seals with him. Or the news that Touka wanted to catch up with him and would be available around the time his sister-in-law would need to leave to meet with a particularly obstinate foreman. And then his brother would be back to discuss potential village growth plans.

And now Mikako is joining in.

Even as he mentally complains, he can feel himself relaxing. Something about having his young soulmate at his side always calms a worry he never notices until it leaves.

\-----

Mikako sweeps into the office she shares with Tobirama, cheerfully greeting Mito while pulling out her draft proposals on qualifications for leadership positions. She's been arguing for requiring the chosen leader (and the immediate family that choses to accompany them) to disown themselves from any clan for the duration of their tenure. Predictably, there has been very vocal arguments against such an extreme stipulation, but she stands firm that doing so would help keep the Hokage seat from being corrupted by clans vying for influence. ' _The entire village is the Hokage's clan; they need to be as fair and unbiased as possible!_ ' 

Tobirama gets it, she knows, but even he is hesitant to put his support into a radical measure like this. He is willing to listen to her, though, which is more than can be said of a lot of the other politicians helping to build the village. Luckily, the Daimyo's court lawyers are taking their cues from the Senju and are willing to hear out her reasonings as well.

They're a nice group, if a bit prissy, but that's nobles for you. They seem to be in awe over the soulbond; apparently the current Fire Daimyo is a fan of dramatic star-crossed upheavals to the social norms. Who knew? It turns out his fourth son has a bond to a peasant boy and with the sensational ninja dramas going on, he is able to sneak in some new amendments to the laws for his own family's happiness.

Tobirama has told her that the man puts on flighty airs and appears to be irresponsible to hide his frighteningly shrewd mind behind a face of geniality. She can respect that sort of deviousness. 

Mikako catches the unamused look in Tobirama's eyes and has to bite down on her laughter. Neither Shikako's history books nor that blurry story from her first life ever described how amazingly human he was. Is. She cannot help but be glad to witness him firsthand.  
She drops the paperwork onto her soulmate's desk and only feels slightly guilty at the betrayed look he shoots her.

"Don't look so down, Tobi-nii; that's not all I brought you!"

Finding a suitable birthday gift for a friend is difficult enough. Add in the soulmate factor and the fact that he is Tobirama Senju, and the task because S-class. Something practical, yet unique, avoid anything bearing either clan's motif, something _special_.

She may have stressed herself out, just a little bit. He'd gotten her a bracelet to match his own for her birthday, with each of the beads bearing a small storage seal, baring one that held the Hiraishin seal.

Mikako hands him his gift, wrapped in soft blue silk. 

He smiles softly at her and she wonders how this man died single. Being seven doesn't mean that she can't tell when something is beyond aesthetically pleasing. Romance isn't her thing, but she's watched it play out in her friends and wonders if she can push for her soulmate to pursue his own interests, should he have them.

Madara had mentioned suppressants somewhere in his garbled explanation of last night, even if he had resolutely clammed up about the specifics of the conversation he and Tobirama had shared. That's a conversation for another time, though.

She watches nervously as deft hands unwrap the folded cloth until-

"Oh!" 

Mito leans over the desk to get a better look before giving Mikako an impressed nod.

The necklace is deceptively simple. A thin but strong leather cord threaded through the hole of a small white adder stone. A small seal on the back of the river-worn rock had allowed her to fill it to the brim with her own chakra.

"It'll glow if you channel chakra through it, too."

Tobirama does so and the stone shines brilliantly in the office.

Mikako grins broadly at her soulmate's expression. He isn't superstitious, but her protective wishes for him seem to have been understood. The meanings are one of the rare things that were the same in bother her previous lives, making the stone all the more precious, though Tobirama will never know it.  
"Thank you, Mikako. I can't imagine how long you must have searched to find this" He pulls it over his head, letting it come to rest just below his collarbone.

Mito giggles to herself.

"How extremely fitting, Mikako-chan. Tell me, were you inspired by Tobirama's summons?"

_Wait, what?_

Mikako turned wide eyes in the woman's direction as the tips of Tobirama's ears begin to redden.

" _Mito._ "

"Tobirama has summons?" That was news. Why didn't she know this? There was no history record of any summoning contract specific to the Senju besides Tsunade-sama's slugs.

Mito answers for him, arching an eyebrow in his direction. Mikako gets the feeling that she's unknowingly stepped into a warzone and handed one of the sides the win.

"He hasn't introduced you, yet? My, Tobirama, you are late in contacting them as it is!" She begins to remove papers from his desktop and storing them in file cabinets across the room, looking gleeful. Mikako is slightly unnerved. ' _What kind of summon does he have?!_ '

Still looking disgruntled, Tobirama sighs in defeat and calls for an aide to bring him baked sweet potatoes and warmed sake from the market, masterfully ignoring the confused response as he hands over his purse. It seems that Mito is getting her way, after all.

"Each summons has its own requirements of its human summoner. Mine are unavailable during the late winter months, so every spring I am required to summon their leader and renew their contract. They also have me train up their most promising pups when I have time."

The ninja aide returns to the office quickly, delivering the purchases with more flair than strictly necessary. She flutters her eyes at Tobirama, who doesn't appear to notice, as she returns his money. Mikako almost laughs at the kunoichi's pout as she leaves. He begins to form the summoning handsigns.

Mito is busy opening windows, her steps bouncy and excited.

"You may want to step back, Mikako; Kawauso-sama isn't very large, usually, but she is...excitable." There's a moment where he almost seems to hesitate before he bites his thumb and slams his palm down on the cleared desk.

" _Kuchiyose no Jutsu!_ "

Mikako heals the slight wound without a thought as the smoke clears, revealing...

There's a young woman posing seductively on Tobirama's desk. Dark brown hair is styled into an intricate yoko-hyogo, the blue pins perfectly matching the color of the checker-patterned kimono hanging scandalously off the woman's coffee-skinned shoulder. Mikako does a double take when she notices the single-pearl necklace nearly identical to the the one she had just gifted Tobirama resting over a bosom Jiraiya could only dream of.

_What?_

\-----

"Tobi-kun~~~ It's been so long, darling!" She grins playfully and reaches out to ruffle his hair. Mikako gapes. Tobirama stoically accepts the affectionate gesture. Mito is stifling her laughter. 

The smile falls as the woman runs her eyes over her summoner. Her hand moves to cradle Tobirama's chin, tilting his head to examine the tattoos.

"Kawai! Just what have you gotten yourself into?" Her voice is soft, but filled with an undercurrent of danger. Tobirama takes her hand. Kawauso-Sama's people weren't known for their fighting prowess, but that didn't mean they _wouldn't_ fight if they felt they had a reason. 

"Kawauso-Sama, thank you for answering my call. Much has happened since we last met." She gives his wheelchair a look that screams _obviously_. His lips twitch upward. For all her childish antics and teasing, her mind is as sharp as her teeth and twice as swift as her bite.

"I ask to renew our contract and to introduce my soulmate to you." That gets her attention. Black eyes dart to the smallest figure in the room and she is in front of Mikako in an instant, peering closely. The child seems taken aback; Tobirama hopes that she isn't overwhelmed by the intensity of her stare or the lack of boundaries that comes standard with the romp.

\-----

Mikako freezes as this Kawauso-Sama crouches in front of her, faces nearly touching. Her eyes are completely black, with no visible sclera. Her breath smells faintly of fish. There are faint traces of whisker-like markings near her nose.

"Hello Kawauso-Sama, my name is Mikako Uchiha."

The woman grins and her teeth are sharp.

"Uchiha? Uchiha! Kawai~ How sweet is this one? Such a pretty face!"

She finds herself being hugged to the woman's chest and spun around before being brought over to Mito, who looks to be enjoying every bit of this weirdness.

"Mito-chan, look! She's just a little pup! So lovely! Kawai~"

Tobirama covers his eyes with a hand and breathes deeply. In four, out seven.

"Kawauso, please calm down; the tribute will get cold if you don't eat it right away."

She's back on his desk before he finishes, Mikako sitting next to her and looking utterly bewildered. He can sympathize. His first time meeting Kawauso was similarly traumatic.

"Tribute? Right away!"

The scandalously dressed woman bursts into another cloud of smoke, leaving her in her natural form, paws upturned and standing on her hind legs. He hands over the food and drink solemnly, biting his tongue not to laugh at his little soulmate's face.

"Kawai~!"

\-----

There's a large otter sitting back on Tobirama's desk, tearing into a baked sweet potato with utter bliss and drinking heartily from the sake bottle. 

Mikako stares.

' _No wonder there's no mention in the history books; no one would believe them!_ '

The otter, no, Kawauso-Sama turns her head in Mikako's direction.

"Forest Daughter! You'll be good, yes, good for Darling River Son. Glad the you're here! Here? Here!" She nods and resolves to research everything she can about Otter Summons. ' _Is it a speech impediment or are they all like that? Is it a verbal tic like Naruto had? Are they all so easily distracted?_ '

Mito grins and gives a shallow nod to the Otter Boss, who returns it with a happy chatter of her teeth.

"Rivers run true, Kawauso-Sama. I'm glad to meet you again."

"Clear skies and warm sands, Mito-chan; we should make the most of this meeting! Kawai~"

She side-eyes the human woman as she finishes her meal and places a paw to the pearl necklace still held around her neck. It produces a large scroll, which she then unravels. Mikako watches with interest as Tobirama bites his thumb again and presses his hand over the old mark next to his name. The chakra glows as the contract is renewed and Kawauso is quick to reseal it.

Kawauso is quick to do everything, it seems. Her speech is fast, her body darts, and there is an unnerving intelligence in her eyes that belies her puerile chatter.

The otter stares at Mikako again and she freezes, wondering if the creature could somehow read her mind. There's a moment of silence before a hand if ruffling through her short hair and she finds herself looking back up at the woman.

"Kawai, such a cute face! Darling, do let her take care of you." She turns again, giving his tattoos and wheelchair another severe look. " _Someone_ must, if you don't take care of yourself!" 

Finally, she twirls to grab Mito's hands and pull her towards the door. "Mito-chan, Darling is going to be stubborn; you must tell me what's gone on these past months! Months? Months! And I need new hairpins! Let's go!"

\-----

The door shuts behind the two and his little soulmate, still sitting where the otter woman had placed her on his desk, turns to give him a nonplussed look. 

He shrugs.

"My mother was training her when I was born. She has never been very formal with me."

"She is...certainly something." Mikako gives a helpless little laugh as Tobirama helps her down and begins cleaning up after the chaotic river dog. There is still more work to do today, despite the sense of exhaustion that comes from spending even short periods of time with Kawauso.

"I thought Bosses are supposed to be massive, though. Is Kawauso really a Boss summon?" 

There is a memory in his mind, of the little brother who had originally been slated to inherit the summoning scroll. Kawarama had asked the same question in the same stunned tone after his first meeting with the summon he had been named after. 

There's a wave of fond nostalgia as he answers Mikako the same way his mother had answered Kawarama.

"Karauso is exactly as big as she wants to be."

\-----

Mikako isn't sure she understands anything that had happened after Tobirama had performed the summoning jutsu, but that's fine. She can read through archives and suss out the answers on her own time.

Right now, her soulmate's chakra is warm and steady. There is a smile in his eyes and a village to be built.

She retrieves her paperwork from the filing cabinet and gets to work.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> ( **Ending Note** : Kawauso are shape-shifting otter demons from Japanese mythology. They wear checkered kimono when they pretend to be human, blow out travelers' lantern lights, and like to repeat words. They are known to make funny noises and say the word 'Kawai' when questioned. (Kawai is a common Japanese surname and a particular mischievous word that is often confused with 'Kawaii'. In Hawaiian, 'Ka' means 'water' and 'wai' means 'any liquid other than ocean water', so you could look at it as river otter pride!) They also like to pretend to be pretty maidens to seduce young men, then run away and laugh at the prank. Or kill and eat them. 50/50.)
> 
> (Kawauso accepted Tobirama as a summoner instead of Kawarama because Tobirama was the only one who thought to let the Holt know that Kawarama had died.)


	16. Part 16

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> In which there is some short filler and Izuna isn't sure what just happened.
> 
> (Izuna doesn't really care about what gender people identify as, he just likes to hurt people in his head. That being said, I'm putting up a warning for his mental referencing to Touka as 'It'.)
> 
> (Some of this chapter was inspired by more otter-themed research. Apparently, they are more appropriate as Tobirama's summon that I first thought. It's short, but it's cute and people asked for more Kawauso.)

\-----

Izuna is not unfamiliar with administrative work; he's the heir to a powerful Noble clan. All the smaller clans that have pledged their fealty to the Uchiha need to be protected from more than human enemies. When there is sickness or disaster or shortage of food, the Vassal clans turn to them for succor and safety. It's a mark of pride to Izuna that those loyal to his Clan have (so far) never been let down during the years he and Madara ruled.

He had never thought that his skills in provisional management and bookkeeping would land him in such a lamentable position. Checking through endless budgeting plans and running paperwork all over his brother's quickly expanding village was not something a shinobi of his battle prowess should be reduced to!

He fondly recalls the days of wholesale slaughter as he lets the inane stupidity he is now faced with wash over him.

The foreman standing before him was only alive because they needed his talent and because Mikako would be upset with him for setting a civilian on fire. No matter how much it was deserved. 

He withholds a groan. _He's not even part of this project_ ; he had simply been walking past the arguing duo, delivering clan documents to a couple who were opening a smithy outside of the compound's walls, when the presumptive bastard had called to him. Izuna had only responded because that Touka creature had been there. ' _Any opportunity to show up a Senju_ ' he had foolishly thought, and joined the two people, fully expecting to sneer at Touka for interfering with the foreman's work.

Except the Senju was in the right and the foreman was just an _ass_. Really, Izuna can understand having an aversion to speaking to members of that clan, but refusing to listen to perfectly legitimate changes in the construction plans for the evacuation centers simply because it looked like a woman more than it looked like a man? He was wasting his time here.

"Look here, you loathsome worm. I have more important things to do than to stand around and repeat what the Senju is telling you to do. If the Senju says the additions need to be made, then the additions need to be made. Why in the name of the _ancestors_ you can't bring yourself to speak directly to the Senju I don't even want to know, but stop wasting my time with your petty misogyny!"

"Uchiha-san!" The man is blustering now, drawing himself up to his full height, as if that will give him any sway. "A woman can't be trusted with a man's work and that's the truth of the matter! Some chit even relaying a message from a more knowledgeable man is more likely to forget important details, flighty-minded as they are, and upon who's head will the blame fall once the-"

"Oh _seven hells_."

The words are hissed and the 'chit' in question grips Izuna's arm, pulling him a step back and turning it's back to the startled foreman. Izuna sneers and opens his mouth to berate the ill-mannered, presumptive Senju only to be interrupted with a hurried whisper too low for the civilian to pick up on.

"Listen Uchiha, someone's about to join us and you need to _not piss her off_."

He scowls, realizing that the Senju was using his body to prevent the unknown woman from reading its lips. He is even less happy with this turn of events. Izuna's chakra sensing skills are practically nonexistent; if he doesn't get a look at the road behind him, whoever is about to crash this argument is going to be a surprise.

Izuna hates surprises.

He jerks his arm out of the Senju's hold and seems to return his attention back to the boor. His eyes glance away, though, searching for who could possibly draw such a sour reaction from the usually reserved ninja.

There's a flash of red hair and he has just enough time to wonder what the Uzumaki had done to upset the Senju before she enters the conversation.

"Foreman Koto. I see our last conversation has slipped your mind." There's a small smile on her face that raises the hair on the back of Izuna's neck. ' _Is this what the Senju had been talking about?_ '

The addressed man doesn't appear to pick up on the danger.

"Lady Senju. I mean no disrespect, but I cannot allow any womanly meddling to affect the work your Honored Husband and the esteemed Lord Uchiha have tasked me with. Please, find your amusements elsewhere; I'm sure there must be much more gentle pursuits to draw your attention."

Izuna is planning the price he will demand from the Uzumaki for his part in burning the body when the tension is broken by a chirpy, unfamiliar voice.

"Attention? Attention! Mito-chan, who is this?"

\-----

Three hours later Izuna finds himself with his clothes so shredded that he might as well be naked, sitting by a river just outside of Konoha while Touka uses an earth jutsu to finish burying a still-smoldering mass of offal. They turn away from the burial site and meet Izuna's eyes with a haunted stare.

No words are needed, but they speak anyway.

"Kawauso-Sama is a _menace_."

He nods hollowly and turns his head to spit out another mouthful of blood. 

Touka collapses into a seated position next to him, looking utterly exhausted. Feeling generous, Izuna helpfully disentangles the remnants of a fish from their unbound hair. The act evokes a grunt of what might be gratitude. Or a sign of a stomach ache.

"That was..." He trails off and weakly waves his hand, unable to articulate the complete disaster that the duo had just lived through. Touka nods. He gets the feeling that this is far from the first time they have found themselves caught up in this madness; Tobirama's summons are _insane_. ' _Tobirama is likely insane as well._ ' He decides ' _No wonder he's so talented with water jutsu; he never would have survived his summons without that level of mastery._ '

Eventually, he finds some words.

"I've never had to hide the corpse of a _living_ man before."

His companion sighs. "It's always weird the first time."

\-----

That night, Mikako notices the suspicious looks Tobirama shoots his summon when she returns to the tower, looking supremely smug. Neither of them comment on it as the otter returns to her proper form and settles down to sleep on Tobirama's lap.

"I think," she says, keeping her voice pitched low so as not to disturb the summon's rest, "that it might be a good idea to introduce regulations and protections to all sentient creatures, not just humans. If a summons is intelligent enough to be a ninja's partner, they are intelligent enough to be accountable for their actions. It is more that obvious that the ability to reason is not limited to our species."

Tobirama raises an eyebrow at her even as he reaches for a new scroll, brush already in hand.

"Do you have the law reference book from the Land of Flowers? I believe they have a taxation template for pets whose owners leave vast inheritances to. We can use that as a starting point for the proposal."

\-----

Madara watches his brother with ill-concealed worry. Izuna had returned home without an explanation for his disappearance or for the state of his dress, only muttering something about having 'an unusual run in' with an unnamed party. He had barely stayed awake enough to bathe before falling into bed.

He hadn't even noticed the impressively broken nose and bruised cheek that Hashirama had left him with. Madara had been prepared to shout his little brother down from taking offense on his behalf and trying to insist on some sort of retribution. 

Slightly put out, he returns to the paperwork Hikaku had dropped off. Apparently, one of the foremen had suffered a mental break under the pressure of so many projects and they quickly needed someone to fill his position. Luckily, he had left the architecture sketches behind when he had stormed out of the village and Mito was confident that Hashirama could use his mokuton to speed up construction with them.

\-----

Mito smiles to herself as she brings a comb through Hashirama's hair. She can tell he's smiling, chakra warm and content at the gentle attention. It always amuses her how easily he relaxes when she massages his scalp; the 'God of Shinobi' melting under her fingers like a particularly lazy cat. 

The delicate fishbone hairpins her unusual friend had gifted her are set to the side, ready to be used as she plays with her husband's silky tresses.

It's always a pleasure when Kawauso visits.


	17. Part 17

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> In which there is a return to actual plot.
> 
> (My chapters are getting shorter. Must be because they're so full of this strange thing that isn't angst.)
> 
> (@Kuroyuki no Ryu - I am so happy you picked up on that! I'd planned for some sort on mental transition on Izuna's part once he started to get his head out of his ass; I'm very happy that it worked as intended.)

\-----

Mikako keeps her thoughts to herself as her brothers leave the room where they and her Senju family had been meeting with representatives from the Aburame clan - one human male accompanied by two Queens of different breeds and their swarms.

The legislation that had been inspired by Kawauso's chaotic visit regarding the autonomy and protections of demonstratively intelligent non-humans had gone through with minimal fuss; even _Izuna_ , of all people, had insisted that it was a good move. He had also insisted on reviewing the restrictions based on the non-humans, claiming that there needed to be clear laws and punishments for bad behavior, just as there are for their human counterparts.

Touka had joined him in the task. Mikako doesn't really know when those two became...not friends. Demilitarized? Whatever the description, they are the only Senju that Izuna can't seem to run off with that insulting mouth of his. She'll count it as a plus for village relations.

Tobirama shuffles through the notes he'd made and Mikako recovers her original train of thought. The policies that had been introduced had immediately caught the attention of several clans. The Inuzuka in particular were eying the fledgling village, not quite sure whether to take the risk. An entire clowder of ninneko had shown up and settled without bothering to bring a human at all or giving notice. Even clans Mikako had never heard of had tentatively sent out feelers, looking to find how sincere the village was.

The Aburame clan hadn't bothered with testing the waters. They wanted to join Konoha; the only negotiations were for settlement, trade, and ninja-related technicalities. The swiftness with which they were moving was astonishing to her, but she couldn't find a trace of artifice in their actions. She wonders again whether the Aburame might be the most honest ninja in the world because they are avoided to the point where there isn't anyone to whom to lie. It's a little sad, to be honest. Mikako can easily remember a little girl hiding behind a bush, crying at the cruel trick her classmates had played on her.   
Again, her attention drifts. She wonders how Chiyako is doing now. Is the Kunoichi Study Group still going? It's been so many years since her death as Shikako, maybe the young girl has grown up by now. She, Hanabi, and Moegi had been such earnest students...

She wonders if Shikako would have taken a genin team, had she not died fighting that world's Madara. What would her life have been like without the fear of the coming future that had been her constant companion? 

The memory of Shikamaru demanding that a god to give him his sister back is a song stuck in her head. Their painful arguments about her reckless nature are a refrain that will likely never end.

A hand touches her shoulder.

"Mikako? What's wrong?"

Tobirama is there, concern heavy in his eyes. 

She bows her head with a sigh. 

Konoha is small, but strong and growing more so every day. The almost manic compulsion to stay and _be certain_ that it will last has faded in the face of quiet confidence and well-earned trust.

Now would be the best time to enact her plan.

Mikako raises her head to meet Tobirama's gaze with a determined set to her jaw.

"Hey, Tobi-nii...I want to go on a journey together. There's a place I want to visit."

\-----

"Absolutely not. _No way in the seven hells_. Why in the name of the _Ancestors_ do you even want to visit a dump like the Dead Wastes?"

Madara is half-risen out of his seat, hands firmly on the table before him. His sister has obviously been spending too much time with the Senju to have come up with this ridiculous idea!

"He's got a point," Izuna chimes in, also looking at Mikako in confusion. Madara is gratified to know that this mad request is a surprise to him as well. "Why the Dead Wastes? There's nothing there. It's _dead_. That's the point of the name. And why bring _Tobirama_ along? He's not exactly going to be much good for anything."

She gives him a _look_ and he has the presence of mind to at least pretend to seem abashed at his blunt words. Madara swiftly tries to steer the conversation away from the younger Senju's crippled state.

"Even ignoring that, the Dead Wastes are in Wind Country and the fools there are trying to cobble together their own ninja village. It would be too dangerous for someone in your position!"

Mikako shifts uncomfortably, biting her lower lip. She's still determined though, and Madara can feel an equal sense of pride and exasperation at her tenacity.

"Really, little sister, why?" Izuna's voice is gentle and coaxing. They all know that Mikako cannot resist that tone combined with Izuna's genuine care. "Have we upset you in some way?"

She shakes her head immediately. 

"No, it's nothing like that! It's just..." She hesitates, looking between them before visibly coming to a decision.

"Izuna-nii, do you remember that day, when I told you how the scroll hurt to look at?" 

Madara's shoulders tense. There is only one day and one scroll that she could be speaking of with such unease. They had all come so far from those missing months when an impostor had inhabited his body; bringing it up now bought a chill to his bones and a weight to his stomach. Izuna is likely not faring any better, but he nods encouragingly.

"I do, Mikako. You said it felt bad, too. I remember."

"I think that there's an opposite force to the one the cultists were using. I think it's calling me."

She takes a deep breath. "I don't know if...if it's because I was so close to that for so long or because of my chakra hypersensitivity, but...I feel like there's something like it in the Dead Wastes. Only this feels _so kind_ , Izuna, Madara. It feels like music and peace and...and healing. Maybe healing powerful enough to repair the damage done to Tobi-nii's legs."

"I don't want to tell him, in case it doesn't happen, but...I need to try to help him. Please, let me go to the Dead Wastes!"

\-----

"The Dead Wastes?" Hashirama looks confused as he passes his son the bottle of shoyu sauce. Mito raises her eyebrows at him in surprise. 

' _Maybe bringing this up at dinner wasn't the best plan,_ ' Tobirama thinks to himself. Mikako's strange request had been eating at him all day, though. While he has no issue with his young friend and soulmate traveling a bit (provided that she has strong and trustworthy escorts), the fact that she had stipulated that she wanted _him_ to accompany her was still bizarre to his sense of reasoning.

He is fully aware of his inadequacies even if she doesn't seem to care. Mikako believes so fervently that he is still worthwhile despite his ruined legs that, much like when she spoke of the village before Konoha was more than a dream, he can't help but begin to believe it, too. That still doesn't mean he holds any illusions to his ability to travel.

But he wants to.

"Mikako...she's never really asked for anything for herself before, and I can tell that this is of great importance to her. I'd like to fulfill this request, but in my current state...I'd be worse than useless. If she can convince her brothers to let her go, then I would need to ask for guards-"

"But how would you get there? Brother, you're in a _wheelchair_. Wind Country is full of _sand_. Do you expect Mikako-chan to carry you the whole way? Or-"

Hashirama ducks under the chopsticks Tobirama had used as makeshift senbon. His glare is frigid.

"No one will be _carrying_ me anywhere. Despite my infirmity, I can still use the Hiraishin; all Mikako needs to do is place a seal at set distances along the route."

Now it is Hashirama's turn to frown. "Which means you'd be teleporting yourself to unknown, exposed, possibly dangerous destinations several times a day. And that's ignoring the fact that there is no way Madara or Izuna won't accompany their sister; I will not have you traveling with them even with a guard!"

Tobirama is almost touched at his brother's vehemence. Hashirama may trust the Uchiha with his life, but not with his brother's life. It is...comforting to know that the circumstances around his 'death' had angered his foolishly optimistic sibling. If even _he_ is angered at the treatment, then surely Tobirama can be allowed to be upset as well?

"If Uncle and Mikako-nee are going on a trip, then I want to go too!" Tsunarama is standing on his chair, excitedly waving his hands. Tobirama dodges a sticky clump of rice as it flies off of the tightly-gripped chopsticks.

Mito calmly disarms her son and gives a light cuff to his head.

"I'm afraid I'll need you here in Konoha, Tsunarama; who else am I going to depend on while your father is gone?"

Both he and Hashirama blink at the statement. They turn to meet Mito's amused smile.

"I'm going somewhere?"

"Of course you are. You are going to accompany your brother and Mikako-chan to the Dead Wastes. If you are there, you can keep an eye on whichever brother tags along with her as well as make sure Tobirama doesn't exhaust himself. You can even use your mokuton to build houses around the Hiraishin seals so that he can teleport himself more safely."

Tobirama shares a look of surprise with his brother. The idea makes sense, but...

"Are you certain you can handle the village in our absence? It won't be easy to manage the workloads of four other people."

"I will be by the time you leave. Kawauso-Sama was kind enough to mention a few months ago that you have completed a jutsu that creates a copy of oneself?"

He closes his eyes and offers a brief prayer that that was _all_ Kawauso had disclosed to Mito. The testing stages of that jutsu had only just been completed and they had been awkward all around. 

It was worth it, though. Even if it had hurt something deep within him to see his clone _walking_ ; to receive the memory of an act so simple, yet so missed.

"The Multiple Shadow Clone Jutsu. It can be extremely difficult for those with a standard pool of chakra, but you are correct. Your Uzumaki reserves will easily shield you from the potential blowback."

Hashirama is grinning. 

"Then it's decided! Before Konoha names its first Hokage, we will take Mikako to the Dead Wastes!"


	18. Part 18

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> In which the world is forever changed in more ways than one and an excursion begins.

\-----

Despite Hashirama's enthusiastic declaration, it took several more weeks before the travelers could begin their journey. Mikako's head was nearly spinning at the amount of work that still needed to be done. 

The day before they are scheduled to leave, Mikako and Tobirama find themselves at heir desks, wading through missives from the latest batch of potential villagers.

She really hadn't considered how drastically her involvement in Konoha's legislation would change the future she had once lived. Honestly, she hadn't thought that the Non-Human-Nin Acts would make such a difference! But in her hands is a message from the Head of the Hozuki Clan in Mist, cautiously asking whether a clan whose summons have specific environmental requirements could be assured that those needs be met in Konoha's habitat.

She could easily recall the Hozuki she had known as Shikako; he had definitely been a Mist missing-nin. The idea of an entire clan emigrating to another land simply because of their summons was mind-boggling. But...it _would_ save lives if the Mist of this world carried out the Bloodlimit Genocide in the future the same way the one in hers did. Maybe there was something like that there already; if Bloodlimit-using ninja were already considered to be less than human, then a village that treats all of its ninja as equals might be just tempting enough to be worth the danger.

She hands the letter off to Tobirama. If what this 'Gengetsu' says is true, the Clan will need land with an abundance of water; Tobirama would be responsible for the terra-forming project if it were at all possible. Truly, they were all lucky that the land that had been chosen to house Konoha had plenty of underground rivers and reservoirs for its use.

There's a knock on the office door and Mikako can sense that it's one of the new secretaries. Another summons-using family had arrived unexpectedly the night before and needed to meet with the two of them for registration.

Mikako stares blankly at the solidly built red-headed man who enters. He bows to them politely and his blunt delivery only makes her sense of unease grow. It is barely there, just a brush of familiarity even though she knows she's never met him in either of her lives. ' _Did I know a descendant, maybe?_ ' She can tell that Tobirama has picked up on her feelings and is wary of the newcomer in response to them.

"Thank you for your time, Senju-sama, Uchiha-hime; I am Tayuharu Onigawara. I have no clan, but my family has long been contracted to a summons that is often maligned due to their nature. We have come here in hopes that Konoha will provide us and ours with protection."

There is a shadow of grief on his face as he continues and Mikako recalls that the dossier they had been given regarding the family had included a larger number of members than what actually arrived.

"I ask your forgiveness for arriving so soon after our initial request; our troop was attacked by a squad of ninja-monks from a sect of the Fire Temple. Our summons...they are not evil creatures, but they have gained a negative reputation."

Tobirama takes the lead, as usual. Mikako misses being an adult; due to her age, it is a rare thing to have people, even ninja who should know better, treat with as a contemporary. It might be easier to let her soulmate lead these interviews for her, but it doesn't make her any less annoyed.

His tone is sharper than she would have expected it to be.

"The Fire Temple has been sympathetic to Konoha's desire to stop the warring between Fire Country's ninja. What summons upsets them to such a degree and why should we risk tarnishing our relationship with such a notable ally?"

Mikako has the sudden feeling that this exact situation might have happened in her previous world. Tobirama can be ruthless; if denying one small family a place in Konoha will keep the Fire Temple happy...It isn't inconceivable that he would make that choice. She knows from Shikako's experience that the Fire Temple is not just politically powerful.

Tayuharu's chakra is tinged with resignation and disappointment as he stands proudly, refusing to feel shame for his non-human partners.

"My family summons Rage Ogres, Senju-sama. Demons."

She can see the calculations running through Tobirama's mind. Something in her own head is flaring now with a sense of deja vu. She speaks up before her soulmate can send the man and his family away, likely to their deaths. Mikako doesn't think Tobirama would be so cruel as to inform the Temple of the Onigawara's location, but there is only so far a small group can run when an entire religious order is out for blood.

"How do you communicate with them? I was unaware that Rage Ogres could be reasoned with."

The man looks at her as if seeing her for the first time. He likely has realized that she might be his chance at keeping his people safe.  
"The Ogres do not communicate as most do; as their summoners, we are able to sense their needs and intentions." He carefully reaches into his robes and withdraws a familiar-looking flute. "We can direct them with our music. They are as intelligent as any other person! Just because human language confuses them, it doesn't mean that they are any less than us!"

The passion in his voice only affirms Mikako's recognition. Her interactions with the Sound Four had been decades ago, but now she recalls that flute and the girl who had used it. Had Tayuya's family tried to gain admittance into Konoha and been turned away? Perhaps that resentment had helped to eventually lead her to Orochimaru.

The Fire Temple is going to be _such_ a drag to deal with.

She leafs through the papers on her desk, humming when she finds what she's looking for, and hands the Onigawara family leader several forms.

"Konoha will need to see a demonstration of your typical summons and you will need to find a viable way of communication for the Ogres to knowingly consent to living under village laws before we can truly welcome you to the village. We will also need more information regarding any special needs your family might have. In the meantime, there are temporary living quarters in the southern quadrant for visitors and potential immigrants. If you can do this, we will work on your issues with the Fire Temple on your behalf."

She can feel Tobirama's exasperation and she can't blame him, but...she has a good feeling about this.

Tayuharu's hands tremble slightly as he accepts the forms. He seems to be in shock and it takes him several tries before he recovers his voice.

"I...Thank you, Uchiha-hime. Senju-sama. For so long, my family has been treated like _trash_ ; and now...I promise that you will not regret this!"

He bows low and leaves the room, continuing to mumble promises of loyalty.

Tobirama looks at her. She grins crookedly. He remains unamused.

"You had better pray that we return from our journey before their paperwork is filled out. Otherwise Madara is going to be the one to decide whether they stay or not."

\-----

Early the next morning, Mikako hugs Mito and still-sleepy Tsunarama goodbye and cheekily tells Tobirama that she'll be seeing him soon. She and Hashirama meet her brothers at Konoha's main gate just as the sun starts to peek out from over the trees.

Madara is obviously unhappy about losing the argument as to which of them will accompany her on the journey. She tries to cheer him up with a hug and manages to extract a promise from him to behave. The idea that he and Mito were going to be running the village together while the four of them were gone was slightly terrifying.

She holds out hope that there will still be a village standing when they return.

Hashirama laughs at them and joins the hug, lifting the two smaller Uchiha up, much to their mutual ire. Izuna has a look on his face that reveals his newly discovered trepidation at traveling with a man as boisterous as Hashirama Senju.

Eventually, Madara stops hissing death threats and the three travelers set out on their journey.

Mikako looks back once and waves at the lone figure still watching their backs. He raises a hand to wave back before the distance swallows him up.

\-----

Madara lowers his arm slowly as he watches the last of his immediate family vanish into the early morning mist that lays thick within Konoha's woods. He stares after them, squinting his failing eyes in a futile effort to catch another glimpse of them.

The village at his back abruptly feels empty, its colors become diluted and its shining promise dulls. 

He is alone.

Izuna and Mikako are his only remaining siblings, both of whom he has sworn to protect. To have them both missing from his side is an ache he thought he would never feel again once the Uchiha and the Senju had made peace with one another. He had become so accustomed to feeling their chakras flitting around the village, strong and vibrant and safe that their absence is glaring.

Madara folds his arms, still unmoving from his place. The village will be waking up soon; he will be pulled in several direction at once, always needed to end some argument or make some decision. He will grasp this quiet solitude while he can, even if it hurts, even if it only serves to remind him of the family that is out there without him to-!

"Uncle Madara!"

He staggers as the toddler-sized projectile slams into him and throws its arms around his waist. Madara bites off the litany of curses as he gets a look at Tsunarama's childish face. ' _This brat is entirely too much like his father!_ '

"Ah, have they gone already?" Hashirama's wife joins them at a much more sedate pace. He keeps an eye on her, not having forgotten her unstated threat that night so many months ago. He has never had much cause to interact with her since then; he knows her through her husband and son and some of Mikako's tales, but this will be the first time he will work directly with her.

She is dressed neatly, but with the practicality of a woman riding herd on a lively young child. He can see why Hashirama would have fallen for this poised and intelligent woman. There is an air of responsibility and cool regard around her that would have drawn in his oafish friend immediately.

The overgrown fool probably began their courtship with the simple (in every sense of the word) desire to make her laugh.

She is not laughing now, though her slight smile as she lectures her son about not dawdling shows her amusement. It is a touching thing, to watch Hashirama's family behave so fondly with one another. Madara finds himself glad that his friend had found such love in this violent age. 

Mito straightens Tsunarama's rumpled clothes and catches Madara's eyes with her own. Something of his thoughts must have shown on his face, because she pauses for a moment before nodding to herself much like his little sister does when she has made a decision.

"Tsunarama and I were about to visit a new bakery for breakfast, just off the street by the markets. Would you like to join us?"

What he _should_ do is continue on to the Hokage Tower and continue to struggle with the treaty with Waterfall and the problems that have accompanied the formation of all these other Hidden Villages. There are meetings to plan for, a clan to lead, a world to change.

There is an offer of tentative friendship. There is a child who will likely see adulthood. 

He was already planning on getting take-away for breakfast anyway.

"I would be honored to."


	19. Part 19

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> In which the traveling heroes have much to think about.
> 
> (Oh hi there, angst. Glad to see you haven't left yet. You're my favorite, you know?)

\-----

Izuna stays quiet and on guard for the first hour of their journey, letting the chatter of his companions wash over him.

He honestly had not anticipated that Madara would back down from their squabble; he had only pointed out that, of the two of them, Madara had already gotten himself possessed by a god-like being, and look how that had turned out!

He hadn't expected the ringing silence that had followed his words or the flash of shock that had crossed his brother's face. 

Madara had continued to protest, but it was startlingly obvious that his heart hadn't been in it.

Izuna frowns further, the dejection in his brother's tone after they had argued bothers him still. It had been _weeks_ and Madara hadn't lost that sense of melancholy. It almost convinced him to capitulate and let Madara take his place after all; but he remembers in perfect detail how the man had looked under the influence of that Jashin creature. 

Izuna can't risk that happening again. Even though Mikako claims that the 'voice' she is following is a positive one, he will do all he possibly can to protect his siblings from such unearthly powers.

Even if they hate him for it.

Even if they insist on traipsing ignorantly toward the possible dangers.

Even if-!

A large warm hand lands heavily on his shoulder, jostling him out of his thoughts. That Lying Senju is laughing at him.

_Bastard_.

He can feel his face flushing and he grinds his teeth at the embarrassment of getting so distracted by his musings.

"I was just telling Kako-chan here, that there should be a clearing about two hours run from here that would be a fitting start to Tobirama's part of the journey! You seemed rather out of it; are you a terrible morning person, too? Tobirama wouldn't sleep _at all_ if he could help it, but when he does sleep, waking him up early is really taking your life into your own hands!"

Mikako is muffling her giggles behind her hands. That the Liar amuses her is the only reason he hasn't taken off the man's offending hand yet.

"I _know_ where we are going; I was _there_ when the route was planned. Has your memory truly decayed so quickly?"

He twitches as the Senju suddenly halts, face crumpling into a devastated look. There are actual _tears_ in his eyes.  
Izuna takes a step back.

"Forgive me! My careless words must have made you feel so inattentive! I am a terrible traveling companion!"

' _Big Brother...your friend is so weird_.'

\-----

Mikako takes pity on Izuna. Eventually. 

She can totally understand why Hashirama does this; the reactions are _priceless_. She wishes she had a camera. Or the sharingen. Maybe she can draw Izuna's face once they return to Konoha. Both Tobirama and Madara would love to see her brother's response to witnessing Hashirama's hysterics for the first time.

"Hashi-nii, please don't cry! Zuzu-nii really does get grumpy in the mornings!"

It's not even a lie. If this time period wasn't as dangerous and violent as it is, Izuna would probably spend most of the day sleeping. She and Madara often tease him about being a cat in his previous life. Or a Nara. The resultant glare tends to prove their point. 

The admission brings Hashirama out of his funk, though, and he continues on as if nothing unusual had occurred. 

Probably because nothing unusual _had_ occurred, in his mind.

Izuna is watching him as if he were a puzzle made out of exploding tags.

Mikako laughs and convinces him to give her a piggy-back ride. This was going to be fun.

\-----

This was going to be miserable. 

Tobirama can feel his three would-be comrades on the very edges of his senses, waiting for him to join them. He knows that Mikako would have planted the Hiraishin seal right away. He knows that Hashirama will be right there, waiting to catch him like they had practiced during the weeks prior.

He knows Izuna will be there to personally bear witness to his weakness.

Pride is a fickle thing; it can give you strength to win the day and it can drag you from the fight entirely. 

When one fights another with as much regularity and vehemence as he and Izuna did, one develops a strange sort of pride. Tobirama had worked hard to match the younger Uchiha, always trying to keep on edge to himself. Fighting a sharingan-user of Izuna's caliber means that if he were to go into a fight without a new trick he would be at a disadvantage, and any new trick will likely only work once.

Twice if he's lucky.

There had been pride in that. Tobirama could match blades even with a naturally gifted Uchiha swordsman. The fact had been a quiet, satisfied glow in his chest, making all the time he had spent learning the sword seem worth it. For all his admitted talent with it, Tobirama had not truly been drawn to the blade. It was ninjutsu that had been his calling. Creation had been his beacon.

But no one will waste their time teaching a child such things, no matter how much of a gift they have. The wars were bloody, devouring so many children that they had stopped giving the gluttonous beast children and instead called them shinobi.

To be taught anything worthwhile, Tobirama had needed to survive long enough to prove himself worth the effort.

And now...

Now he was going to face his former rival with his frailty on display. Not sitting at a table, allowing them both the chance to pretend, but fulling exposing the debilitation that had resulted from the Uchiha's actions.

There is a strong part of him that wants nothing more than to ignore their plan, to send them a message telling them to continue on without him. Surely he was not so important?

It is cowardliness and he knows it.

Tobirama squares his shoulders, grips his small travel bag, and activates the seal.

\-----

Hashirama waits expectantly, arms outstretched under the seal Mikako-chan had placed on the ceiling of the mokuton-grown shelter. The little girl had quickly drawn her brother outside, insisting on exploring the area while they wait. 

Apparently the child had not been allowed out of the Uchiha Clan's old compound during the Warring Era, for obvious reasons. Hashirama approves of the way she uses that fact to her advantage; compelling Izuna via guilt into bowing to her wishes. 

Mito would be _so proud_. Their mother would have _loved_ her. If she and Kawarama had ever met, the world may not have survived.

Tobirama is taking his time.

That's fine. Hashirama will wait.

He knows that he is a difficult man to be related to. He gets lost in his dreams. He is often _so_ foolish. Tobirama is forever sighing and following after him, overshadowed and under-appreciated.

He had realized this after his brother's 'death'.

The experience was something he never wanted to go through again. He _prays_ that he will die before his remaining brother, because losing him again...

Hashirama takes a breath, holds it. In four, out seven.

He has the unexpected chance to be _better_ to his family. To really look at his brother and _see_ him.

Hashirama will not fail him.

There is a flash of yellow light and Tobirama drops into his waiting arms. He smiles at his brother, pale and broken and strong enough to survive some of the worst humanity (and beyond) can provide. Hashirama knows what anxieties the younger man struggles with and determinedly overcomes time and time again.

He holds him closely for a moment too long. Tobirama doesn't complain.


	20. Part 20

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> In which Mito has her own agenda that may have unintended repercussions and Madara gains first-hand experience with 'girl talk'.
> 
> (Warnings for discussions about sex)

\-----

As she watches Madara skillfully talk around a belligerent representative from the Capitol, Mito reluctantly decides she like him. She doesn't want to; it would be so much easier if she could simply continue to regard him with barely-hidden distaste.

But he is cunning and strong and capable. Tsunarama adores him and he regards her son with his own brand of hidden fondness. He is a well-loved leader among his people and works tirelessly to build Konoha into a place worth protecting.

He had also ordered the torture of one of the people she genuinely cared about.

Mito is not a forgiving person; she tends to keep grudges until they die and then has them stuffed. While she had refrained from tainting her husband and son's relationships with the man with her dislike, she had kept herself at a cool distance.

She remembers the night Tobirama had returned to them. She remembers waiting for him to fall into a fitful sleep before cutting his hair to his preferred length. 

The Uzumaki tend to wear their hair long due to the old belief that the soul rests within it. To cut one's hair is to mutilate the core of a person. That view now is an outdated belief, but it had filled her mind as she had gently snipped away at the matted and sweaty mess Tobirama had returned with.

She and her scissors had nothing to do with her brother-in-law's _mutilation_.

Mito loves Tobirama with all the ferocity of an older sister. Though the man himself would deny it, she owes him _so much_. 

Tsunarama may never have been born without his Uncle's research into pre-natal health. For that alone, Mito would drown the world to see him happy.

Madara sees the noble to the door, easily herding him away now that he's signed off on the contract. She watches him shut the door firmly behind the entitled prick.

"Complete _moron_. Why we don't just _take over_ , I don't know. It'd be easy."

Her lips quiver in amusement as he returns to his desk. She is currently occupying her husband's seat, happily storing his most used tools in the lowest drawers. She doesn't get too many opportunities to admire Hashirama's arse; those annoying Senju robes cover it up. It's not too terrible of a crime to engineer a situation in which he'd be forced to bend over, right? Just the thought of his tall, strong body leaning down, his gorgeous hair tumbling over his shoulders like a silken waterfall, his muscular thighs leading up to that deliciously cute rump...it makes her toes curl just thinking about it!

Madara is staring at her, face twisted in revulsion.

She discreetly wipes her mouth to make sure she's not drooling.

"Apologies, my thoughts ran away with me. I forgot that you have talent as a sensor as well." 

He still looks disgruntled. She doesn't blush. What shame is there in desiring one's husband? True, she usually keeps a tighter hold of herself when Tobirama is nearby, but he has had long practice with ignoring the carnal tinge to the chakras around him.

"I only hope that it is your _husband_ you were thinking of and not the poncy bastard I just kicked out."

She frowns at his tone, internally snarling at the insinuation even though she knows he is merely covering for his own unease. Really, it's rather fascinating to realize how _uptight_ these land-dweller clans are.

"Have no fear, Madara-san; I simply cannot help planning how I will welcome Hashirama home. I do hope you will avoid the office for the night when he does return? And perhaps the morning? I'm sure that you will wish to spend your time with your siblings rather than possibly interrupt our... _celebrations_. As I'm sure you can attest, my husband's stamina is _legendary_."

Mito smiles as he turns red, choking on his own tongue and clamping his hands over his ears. Wide eyes stare at her with horror.

"D-DON'T _SAY_ THINGS LIKE THAT!"

' _How cute._ '

It will be worth keeping him around if only for his reactions. She continues to read through her self-assigned tasks as Madara calms himself down. Once silence has descended and his eye has stopped twitching, she speaks without looking up from the form she's holding.

"I find myself curious, Madara-san. _Is_ Tobirama your 'type' or did you really discover a fondness for bondage?"

There's a clatter as Madara drops his pen in shock. She finally meets his eyes evenly, feeling some satisfaction at the keen mortification she can see within them. _Good_. She remembers the worst nights, the ones before they had found out that an open window and moving air could break him out of his panicked states. She remembers staying at Tobirama's side, her chakra chains keeping him still as he would shake and vomit, eyes trained on a terror that only he could see.

Hashirama had to take Mikako and Tsunarama out of the house on those nights. Tobirama's unleashed chakra could be so dangerous during those unstable periods.

Mito cannot take those nights out of Madara's hide. She wants to. But Madara smiles at her son and holds his little sister with such love. He is contrite. He actively works to make up for his actions.

She wishes she could continue to hate him.

"He- Tobirama- He _told you?!_ " There is rage creeping into his voice. 

"There are parenting seals all over the public areas of my house, Madara-san. The kitchen is the worst choice in which to have a private conversation."

He gapes at her. "Parenting...?"

"Monitoring seals. Tsunarama is near the age where he will be allowed to stay home without supervision. That doesn't mean a mother doesn't worry. The seals pick up on sounds and send them to me when they are activated." She tilts her head again and can see the realization crossing Madara's face as he focuses on her earrings. "Of course I activated them when we left my lamed little brother-in-law alone. Just because he continues to refuse normal guards doesn't mean I won't keep an eye out for his safety."

Madara stares at her for a moment more before closing his eyes and taking a deep breath.

"...What do you want out of this, then?"

' _Kawauso-sama might just be right_ ' she thinks to herself as she watches her new friend squirm. The otter summon had had quite a lot to say when she had been told what had occurred during those months when Tobirama had been unable to call for any of the romp.

Before she had returned to her realm she had made special note to sneak around the village, tasting at Madara and Izuna's souls, deciding for herself whether to administer her kind's own brand of justice. That the Uchiha brothers had survived spoke well for them.

"I'm not bringing this up to blackmail you, Madara-san. Despite your prior actions against Tobirama, you have proven yourself to be a frustratingly decent person. Occasionally petty, abrasive, violent, and hard-headed, yes, but there is a lot to be said for trying to become a better human being."

"So., what do you think about Tobirama?"

\-----

Madara feels faint as he returns to staring dumbfounded at the petite she-devil sitting at Hashirama's desk.

_He is not prepared for this conversation!_

There's a vaguely confused noise coming from his throat that sounds like rusted iron and he can't be sure that the world hasn't turned itself upside-down at some point. _How had his life come to this point?!_

"...Dangerous." The word traitorously tumbles off his lips before he slams his self-control back into place.

He already knows that Hashirama's little brother matches some of what he looks for in a partner. It's kind of hard to miss when their clans have fought so often.

Tobirama is dangerous. Strong. Determined. Calculating. Efficient.

Tobirama is a Senju. Hashirama's little brother. Mikako's soulmate. A casualty of Madara's hate.

The idea of Tobirama as anything other than an opponent or a victim is absurd. _He has no right!_

Mito is beaming at him. What is the point of this? Did she simply wish to see him humiliated?

\-----

The hormonal suppressants Tobirama had been taking since before puberty had worn off during his time as a captive of the Uchiha and with Mikako's help she has finally convinced him that restarting the regiment would only cause him harm. Such urges may be uncomfortable, but they are necessary for proper development. Mikako had been especially pushy on the subject, nearly in tears at the thought that Tobirama was harming himself.

She giggles to herself as she settles in to force the idea of people seeing Tobirama as a possibly sexual partner, and him _responding to that_ , further into Madara's head.

It's for his own good, really. Who knows how he might respond to his sister's soulmate dating? Better to lay some foundations now before Tobirama begins to actually notice the people flirting with him. If it meant embarrassing him at the same time, well, that's just unfortunate, isn't it?


	21. Part 21

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> In which Izuna has a chance meeting with reality and Madara and Mito may be the most terrifying team-up politics has ever seen.
> 
> (aka I didn't intend for the Onigawara to cause this what even is this hoo boy)

\-----

The first day hadn't been so bad; Izuna had hardly caught a glimpse of Tobirama as the Senju used his strange jutsu to keep up with the traveling group, affording him the luxury of completely ignoring that the man was there at all.

The night was more troublesome, as Hashirama had insisted on growing two separate houses, immediately claiming one for himself and his brother. Izuna had sneered to himself at that, but took the opportunity to speak privately with Mikako as they were setting up their bedrolls.

"Sister, can you tell me more about this...being? Do you have any idea of what we might find in the Dead Wastes?"

She turns her head to look at him and he frowns. Even when he isn't even in sight, Mikako tends to turn her head or simply look out of the corner of her eyes in Tobirama's general direction. It's a really irritating habit; the Senju isn't _that_ interesting.

He hates it, that his baby sister can be so easily distracted from him. _Izuna_ was the one who had taught her to read. She had smiled at him for _years_ before the Senju had entered the picture. _He_ had been the one to sit at her bedside when she was suffering from her soulmate's wounds.

Wounds Tobirama had gotten from fighting _him_.

Izuna shuts that line of thought down hard. The nightmares that had followed that discovery had been horrific and he has no desire to tempt them into visiting him during this trip. He's done enough damage to her already; letting it slip how badly her soulmate's identity affects him would be unforgivable! She would worry. He doesn't deserve her worry after betraying her trust in him.

"It's old and it's _big_. At least, the power I can sense feels enormous. I don't know how large the physical form might be."

The description is anything but reassuring.

"This doesn't seem like a good idea; how are we supposed to control that sort of force? If this thing is like the monster behind the scroll, any one of us could be possessed. Madara was dangerous enough; with our luck that walking tree _Hashirama_ will fall under it's influence."

She considers the possibility, pausing with her hand in her rucksack.

"Control...I don't think it would be possible to force it to do anything. It doesn't feel alive in the traditional sense. Sentient, yes, but not..." Mikako shrugs, seeming to be frustrated with her inability to explain the entity that has apparently been drawing her to the Dead Wastes since the Jashinist scroll was burned.

She shakes her head and finally fishes out the scroll with her clothing sealed inside.

"But that will come later, Zuzu! I need to change, so you go outside for a bit!"

He mockingly rolls his eyes at her. Seriously, he had been changing her diapers not too many years ago and privacy is a luxury in this world...but he steps outside anyway.

Izuna wanders the perimeter of the campsite, cataloging the seals his brilliant sister had created. Seals to hide from sight, to hide from hearing, to hide from scenting. Sensory barriers and her ever-useful 'Keep-Away' tags, to gently suggest to any wandering party that the way forward is elsewhere. ' _She is so magnificently ingenious_ ' he thinks, pride swelling in his chest.

The soft murmur of voices draws his attention to the short trail leading to the latrine they'd dug. The Senju are returning from a bathroom trip, it seems. Izuna sends a small rush of chakra to his ears, sharpening his hearing, and carefully ducks into the evening's shadows. He waits patiently for them to pass him by.

It's not merely idle curiosity, this spying; despite being told that his former nemesis has become a cripple, Izuna held on to his doubt. Even if Tobirama _had_ been disabled for a time, his brother is the foremost healer in the world. It is impossible for the arrogant older man to have not recovered by now. Why they continue to insist on the ruse is beyond him.

"Anija, I hate this. Next time just let me unseal the stupid chair." Tobirama's voice. Izuna's never heard it with so much emotion. Granted, most of that emotion can be identified as annoyance and embarrassment.

"Nooo, Tobirama, your wheelchair would be next to useless in a forest! I don't mind carrying you!" That has him craning his neck, searching for a glimpse of his erstwhile rival being toted around by his lug of a sibling.

" _I_ mind!" They emerge from the trees and Izuna almost cackles at the sight. Hashirama is carrying his brother balanced on one arm, letting his supposedly useless legs dangle freely. For his part, Tobirama looks positively murderous as he's forced to lean against the broader man's chest, holding tightly to his sleepwear.

Really, it is _ridiculous_ that they are taking the act so far. He continues to watch them make their way to their shelter, a sneering grin adorning his face.

"Of course my wheelchair would be next to useless; I'd be in it!" Hashirama jolts at the words, looking to his brother in shock. The mirth Izuna is feeling begins to fade. ' _They certainly can't know I'm watching. Why bother continuing this charade? How are they benefiting from it?_ ' Without him realizing it, the smile has dropped entirely at the bitterness in Tobirama's voice.

"Brother...you aren't-! There is _no one_ who considers you to be use-!"

" _I_ do. What worth is there in a ninja who can't even get to the toilet under his own power?" Izuna isn't rookie enough to shift uneasily at the anguish he can hear, but he can admit to himself that it is an uncharacteristic tone to the man he had crossed swords with for so many years. The fight seems to leave the Senju all at once and he slumps, unresisting as his elder brother cradles him with such care that the spying Uchiha almost feels like some sort of voyeur.

He backs away as Hashirama begins to speak to his burden, trying to soothe the pain to which Izuna had briefly born witness. He is distracted as he returns to his and Mikako's lodgings, missing her questioning looks in his direction.

It just doesn't make sense. Tobirama must have sensed him and alerted Hashirama to enact a cover; the Senju is devious enough for that! But...

Izuna hurries through his own nightly routines and settles into his bedroll.

Sleep doesn't come easily.

\-----

 

Madara loves his little sister, truly. Adores her, fact. He had ended a decades-long war and built a village when she had run away from him, just so that he could prove his regret at his actions. She and his brother are the two best things in his life and he will give them all he can of himself to keep them happy.

That doesn't mean that she doesn't drive him _absolutely mad_ every so often. 

' _There will be retribution_ ' he grimly promises himself, ' _for leaving me with this mess._ '

The representative from the Fire Temple pauses for breath and Madara deftly takes the opportunity to intervene. Mito gives him a tense, grateful smile from across the room. They had been informed about the Onigawara family's status, but no one had expected for the Temple to act so quickly. 

"I understand the Fire Temple's stance on this, Hideyoshi-san-"

The man interrupts him. Mikako owes him _so much_ for putting up with this disrespect.

"Then you must see why their ogres are a blemish upon this world! We are willing to concede that the family itself is not necessarily evil, but to continue to have interaction with those monsters is an affront to the will of the gods!"

Madara would like to reply with an dry anecdote regarding his own relatively brief 'interaction' with an evil and ungodly creature, but he doesn't think that would help the situation.

After experiencing Jashin's influence, he really didn't see a small troop of ogres as anything but a minor concern, if that. Especially after he'd dropped in on one of the family's practice sessions. They had been dedicated to proving their partners' intelligence and finding a more universal way to communicate. The head of the family, Tayuharu, had been eager to show Madara the rudimentary hand signs he and one of the three most commonly summoned ogres had developed. 

It was even a bit moving to watch, even blurredly, the short, stocky man teach a blind behemoth to work with such gestures. Tayuharu had been fearless as he had adjusted the ogre's blunt fingers and communicated with him through a mix of speaking and flute playing. He had scaled the massive creature with ease, at times even sitting on its shoulder to better attempt to teach it which 'mouth sounds' matched which 'heavenly sounds'. 

The idea of tossing out such potential due to the Temple's stances bothered him.

Mito insists that the real reason is because Madara has finally found an adult shorter than himself that he can get along with.

_Witch_. 

The Temple representatives really hadn't endeared themselves to her, either. Word of Tobirama's tattoos had gotten around and the Temple was up in arms about _that_ as well, insisting on staying in Konoha until the man returned so they could perform a myriad of cleansing rituals on him. No one had ever survived a Jashinist ritual before and the monks were loudly declaring the tattered state Tobirama's soul must certainly be in. 

He swears he nearly saw emotion on Touka's stern face when one of them had had the gall to insinuate that their cousin's infirmities were likely a result of his soul being so damaged that his body was reacting to the incorporeal wounds. Madara had later heard them speaking quietly to Mito about setting someone named Kawauso at the lot of the 'empty-headed shits' and being done with the problem. He had wondered if perhaps Izuna was a bad influence on the Senju.

The extant and the way he had tortured Tobirama had thankfully remained unknown. The general population who are peripherally aware of the situation simply assumed that the Senju's stay with the Uchiha had been that of a standard captive's; no one from either clan was willing to disabuse them of that belief. 

It was for the good of the village that the knowledge remain buried, but at times Madara finds it to be incredibly agitating. In the eyes of the Fire Temple, Madara had stopped an unholy ritual and is to be commended for that. They _honor_ him for it. 

He avoids them as much as possible and tries not to show his derision when he cannot. If they knew what he had done, it wouldn't only be the Onigawara they would be after.

"You of all people, Madara-sama, should understand why such profane things must not be allowed to cross the barriers between our worlds! You were the one to strike down the wicked influence of those heretical Jashin-!"

Madara stands abruptly, not willing to listen to this pompous, inbred, overly-perfumed _fool_ for a moment longer. He plants his hands on his desk and leans forward with a glower.

"By your own reasoning, then, you should give more weight to my words when I say that the Onigawara and their summons are less of a blight on existence than anyone else in this room. This is a village of _ninja_ , Hideyoshi-san; we have our own ways of dealing with corrupting influences."

He stares the priest down, letting his powerful chakra presence fill the room. Mito gives the man a small smile when he glances her way, looking for an ally. It isn't friendly.

Hideyoshi finally backs down. Madara continues to glare for a moment more, just to prove his point, before straightening. The Fire Temple had brought a number of problems with it; this was only one of them. It was hardly even the most troubling; the biggest issue is one from the Capitol. Mito gracefully rises to her feet as well.

"I will take your advisements under my consideration. For now, I must ask you to excuse myself and the Lady Senju. We have recently gotten word that the Daimyo himself is traveling to Konoha to see for himself what has gotten his Temple so outraged. You will understand that there is much to do before we receive a visit from such an auspicious leader."

He doesn't bother to listen to the priest's protests and sweeps past him easily. Mito joins him. They take their leave together, remaining silent until at a suitable distance.

"They should be at the Dead Wastes by tonight. I've sent word already; they should know of the visit at morning." The words are softly whispered. She barely needs to move her lips. He responds in kind. 

"Even if they begin to travel back immediately, they won't reach Konoha until after the Daimyo has arrived. Tobirama might be able to use his Jutsu to return in time, but just barely."

There is a sense of mutual comradeship between the two that Madara has not felt since his last battle. They were going into this political nightmare with only one another as assured allies. He's almost excited. It certainly won't be as physically challenging as his usual fights, but the chance to draw blood, even metaphorical blood, is heady.

Madara will protect the village his sister loves so dearly from any enemy.


	22. Part 22

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> In which Mikako meets Gelel again, for the first time.
> 
> (Okay, my AO3 readers, I've got a little explaining to do. One of the neat parts about the fanfic Dreaming of Sunshine is that the author doesn't exclude the filler or the movies, which really gives those spiraling patterns of changing the plot some extra interesting flair!
> 
> So, The Stone of Gelel movie. Shikako lived through it, despite actually dying via a sword forged in this chakra stone that has amazing regenerative properties. Mikako is being led by Gelel's song, but she's also heavily relying on her memories as Shikako in this chapter.
> 
> I really hope this wasn't too confusing to follow. Let me know if you have questions about any of it and I'll do my best to answer!)

\-----

After personally witnessing Hashirama catching his little brother out of midair several times, Izuna has come to the disquieting conclusion that Tobirama isn't faking his immobility by the time their group reaches the Dead Wastes. He isn't sure how to categorize his feelings about it.

Tobirama is ( _was? This doesn't feel real_ ) his rival on the battlefield, someone he looked forward to confronting each fight. They never sparred the way their older brothers tended to; no, for them it was always a match of life and death. In his more melodramatic moments, Izuna had imagined that they would even die together, locked in that glorious struggle, their eyes on nothing but one another as their lifeblood leaves their bodies. Dying would be worth it, to take a warrior of that Senju's caliber down with him.

It stings to admit that he admires ( _admired? This doesn't feel right_ ) the other man's skill as much as he loathes the man himself.

Loathed.

Izuna didn't think that it's possible for him to lose his hatred, but...living in Madara's village has dulled it. He doesn't enjoy the sensation, either. Walking among the other clans _itches_ at him. Speaking to the Senju in general makes his guts burn. He is on-edge and off-balance at the same time and he resents being put through this. He had been _content_ to die fighting, not live with this jumble of emotions constantly surprising him with a conscience he had thought he had killed the first time he'd driven his sword through a Senju younger than his littlest brother.

Now he can see Tsunarama as the boy who had fallen to his blade, shock coloring his features, pale hair quickly soaking with blood as too-big armor does fuck-all to protect him.

It _bothers him._

He knows that there is a nearly life-ending scar down Touka's side and he remembers the feeling of triumph he'd had when he'd put it there. The casual annoyance at seeing them back on the battlefield months later, having survived only due to Hashirama's medical knowledge.

He _regrets that._

Izuna watches Tobirama sitting (where he had been placed by his brother because _he can't fucking walk_ ) near the entrance to the ancient and possibly cursed temple, listening to Mikako finally admitting to her soulmate the full reason why she had been so determined to bring him to the Dead Wastes.

"Why haven't you _fixed him_ yet?" Hashirama turns his head to stare at him and Izuna fights off a flush. He hadn't meant to speak aloud, but backing down now would only be admitting weakness. He keeps his gaze resolutely forward as he continues. "You _invented_ healing jutsu; why in the seven hells are you allowing your own _brother_ to continue living like this? We wouldn't even have needed to make this journey if you had just fixed him like you're supposed to!"

Hashirama's dumbfounded face slides into a mask of eerie calm when Izuna finally looks at him. His eyes are considering and uncharacteristically harsh in the fading light. Izuna remembers the raw power this normally unassuming man wields and forces himself not to back away. The mokuton is more difficult to use in the desert, the group had discovered. If Tobirama hadn't been with them to sense every hidden oasis and underground spring, it may not have been possible at all.

Not that Hashirama needs the mokuton to fight Izuna.

"I believe I gave you and your brother the specifics of Tobirama's injuries already, Izuna." There is a familiar chill in the taller man's perfectly even-tempered voice. Izuna recalls further that this man had married a woman who considers Tobirama's _soul-eating summon_ to be a dear friend. Hashirama continues to regard him with a frighteningly placid look for several moments more. Izuna is just beginning to feel sweat that has nothing to do with the desert's fading warmth trickle down his back when the Senju's expression changes into one more disappointed. "The damage is too severe for any known healing procedure to mend. There is nothing any of our healers can do to help, not at this point in time."

They are both silent, eavesdropping on the conversation between their respective younger siblings. The idea that Mikako is willing to confront some sort of _god_ for the chance to heal her soulmate is one they both are apprehensive about.

It's another strange feeling, to know that Hashirama Senju would be so protective of his little sister.

Izuna returns his gaze to their other companions, frowning angrily. There is a feeling of hollowness in him that he finds upsetting. Distracting.

Izuna watches an enemy that he had soundly defeated and feels a cruel satisfaction. Izuna watches his sister's lamed soulmate treat her kindly and feels uneasy. Izuna watches a man he had grown up alongside whose mobility he had destroyed and feels shame.

\-----

' _There is no chakra in the Dead Wastes._ ' Tobirama has had to remind himself of this more often than he liked during the hours it had taken their group to find the entrance to the temple of an entire long-dead civilization.

' _The Dead Wastes has no chakra._ ' There is still light, though it is fading. There is dry desert wind against his face. He can see Hashirama out of the corner of his eye.

' _This isn't the casket. My chakra is not sealed._ '

He stares at the temple steps with a frown as Izuna and Hashirama make camp.

"I feel like this should have been harder." That gets a quick laugh out of Mikako, for whatever reason. She is sitting next to him, letting the silence between them rest. He...isn't happy that she had brought them out here on the off-chance that using the powers of some otherworldly being might heal his legs. An otherworldly being is what got them into this mess in the first place, after all.

Besides that, the closer they've gotten to the temple, the quieter he has gotten and the more distracted Mikako has become. Apparently, the music only she can hear has been growing louder.

He _really_ wishes that she had told him what was going on from the start of this journey; the fact that his soulmate is being influenced by some sort of...of _Anti-Jashin_ , if Mikako is to be believed, it's not something that should have been kept from him. _At all._

Once she can focus again, the two of them are going to go over some _rules_ about this sort of thing. It can't be healthy.

He doesn't want to lose her. If this creature takes her from him he will _break_ in the most destructive of ways.

Izuna ( _There is no chakra in the Dead Wastes_ ) and Hashirama are approaching. He doesn't speak as his brother lifts him up, only puts an arm around the man's broad shoulders. Somehow Hashirama has picked up on the levels of stress he's been at for this entire trip and has kept his usually excessive cheerfulness under strict control. Tobirama is grateful for his consideration, even if he cannot yet get the words through his tense jaw.

Mikako smiles at them all as she activates a light seal and leads them up the stairs into the temple.

\-----

Hashirama hopes the littlest Uchiha knows where she's going; she's certainly leading them confidently enough. He can feel his brother's apprehension growing the moment they enter the mine; if he looks, he knows he will see Tobirama's eyes widened with an unconscious fear. Hashirama can feel the younger man's heart already beginning to race in the cramped tunnels.

He can only hold Tobirama all the more tightly and silently ache to do _more_.

There's a light squeeze from around his shoulders. He smiles to himself despite the strained atmosphere that seems to roil from fear and disbelief to a wild and desperate hope.

Hashirama prays that there is some miracle down here. Tobirama hides it well, but there is a streak of his own sort of optimism in his heart. It isn't the forceful cheer that Hashirama knows he himself possesses in spades, but something softer and more fragile. He can see it in Tobirama when Mikako is around, or any of the other children that tend to flock to him.

He worries what will become of that delicate sense of hope for the future should nothing come of this trip.

It is too easy to remember the way Tobirama's hollow eyes would stare through him in those days that followed the diagnosis that he would never be able to walk without pain. Hashirama dreads seeing that devastated look on the younger man's face again.

Whatever the outcome, he will be there for his beloved brother, no matter what.

\-----

Gelel's song is familiar and so bright that Mikako has to wonder if being reborn _again_ had somehow made her more attuned to it. The walls of the mine speed past her as she descends faster, her feet moving unconsciously. The pull is undeniable now and she is almost happy to be swept away in its haunting music.

But she restrains her mind even as her body begins to jog. Izuna says something, reaches for her arm, but she slips away. Hashirama calls out, but she cannot answer him when there are the songs of a thousand stars burning through her.

_She is so close_ and yet she keeps her distance. She cannot lose what she has now, who she now is. Mikako has come here with a purpose.

Gelel is eager to hear her, to sing to her, to answer the tiny flame.

_Faster, faster!_ She had once fought in these halls and then she had once died in this room; right _there_ is where Haido had used the stone to plunge Temujin's sword through her back.

There is the central plate where the old man Kahiko had made his own attempt on Haido's life. There is the dais and a pedestal where her goal rests!

The small stone is cool and welcoming in her hands. It feels like coming home.

"Mikako!"

Tobirama is there, falling to his knees as he keeps his grip on the back of her shirt. Desperation is clear on his face and she vaguely wonders why. She looks behind him, watching her brother and Hashirama not far away. Tobirama must have leapt from his brother's arms, staggering the last few steps to catch up to her before his legs gave out on him.

"Don't go! You're _not yourself_ , Mikako, _please..._ " His voice is raw with emotion as the other two join them, grabbing hold of her arms. Izuna's sharingan is spinning wildly in his fear for her. "I don't care if I can't walk; _losing you isn't worth it!_ "

"Sister, please, this is _enough-!_ "

"Kako-chan, I can't let you endanger yourself like this-!"

She is confused; there is nothing wrong. The stone is _right here_ and she can _fix this_. She reaches her chakra out with a plea.

"It's okay. I'm okay. I'm not Gelel: Gelel is there. I won't become us."

\-----

Gelel is delighted by the little fires that have visited for the first time and again; the littlest one is theirs, was theirs, will be theirs already. They can recognize a shadow of themselves in that little life.

It takes less than nothing to reach back and connect with that shadowed impression.

\-----

Mikako feels herself being swallowed up in the purity of Gelel's light the same way Shikako had once been, but this time she is not dying.

Shikako had had the time to study the Book of Gelel back in that other life. Mikako _remembers_.

The power passes into her, excited to be used once more. It welcomes her back again for the first time.

\-----

Izuna knows he is bruising his sister, but he can't bring himself to let go. Mikako is not alone inside her body and all he can remember is fighting a Madara possessed. His brother's body had moved jerkily, as if the thing in control wasn't used to the limitations of a human body, but it had been strong and fast despite that and Izuna _knows_ that luck had been a major reason he had won at all. If the thing had had more time to adjust to wearing Madara like a tunic, Izuna would not have stood a chance.

And now Mikako has _willingly_ allowed something to inhabit her body, he can feel it, can sense it even with his paltry ability. A glance at Tobirama almost has him stumbling in shock at the unfocused eyes and slack face as the man collapses, entirely insensate. Whatever is going on is clearly taking its toll on his sister's soulmate.

Hashirama cries out, catching his brother around the waist before he hits the floor. His own fear and confusion is starkly written across his face. Izuna vaguely recalls his brother telling him that Hashirama is afraid of ghosts; almost hysterically he wonders if this means that bodiless godlike entities count as such.

"Oh _honestly_ , I've got this."

The exasperation in Mikako's voice nearly makes him laugh purely out of reflex, and then...

\-----

Gelel is light and life and it is eager to reach out and soothe the two lives at their side, calming them with a touch, sending a pulse of healing power through them both, and then...

Mikako doesn't even need to physically touch Tobirama, but she does anyway. Gently pulling him from Hashirama's grasp to settle him on the ground, she kneels at his side and presses her hands over his heart, memorizing the way it beats.

Power sweeps through her hands, following the course of his blood with every pump of his heart, seeking out every remnant of pain brought on by the Draught of Agony, erasing every injury it can find.

She can see the way their souls meet, the complimentary colors and way they swirl together like the world's most intricate puzzle, and from the ripples of surprise from her companions, so can they.

There is such temptation to keep this power, but she knows the cost would be too high. She might control it now, but her blood is not what Gelel was made to respond to. Sooner or later, she would falter and vanish into the vastness of the stone's perception.

Mikako has too much to do, yet.

Gelel sings to her as she focuses, tears beginning to run down her face even as she smiles.

Gelel is light and life and safety.

And once again, for the first time, she-

-lets-

-go.

\-----

Hashirama has to close his eyes at the light that bursts into the sky. As he does, he can feel his mokuton responding to something in the rocky ground around them as plants begin to flourish in this formerly barren section of the desert.

And yet none of that matters as Mikako looks at him and her brother from where she remains kneeling by Tobirama's side.

She's entirely herself again and she smiles despite her tears. Izuna makes a choking noise and steps forward.

She gives them a thumbs-up and clears her throat.

"Mikako, out!"

Her brother catches her unconscious form before she can collapse over her soulmate.


	23. Part 23

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> In which there is aftermath and things begin to draw to a close.
> 
> (Chapter, why are you so short? You seemed so much longer when we first met.)

\-----

Izuna is staring again.

Hashirama pretends he doesn't notice and continues to run his fingers through Tobirama's hair. He using a diagnostics jutsu again and is again amazed at the results. New muscle and tendon have grown where once there was too much scar tissue for his brother's legs to work.   
He can feel awed tears welling up and shamelessly lets them fall. 

He had hoped for a miracle, but hadn't really expected one. The ninja life is hard and unforgiving; such things do not happen in this world.

But now, a brother was returned to him five months after his funeral. Now, there is peace between those who were once bitter enemies. Now, an impossible wound has been healed.

Hashirama marvels at the wonder of it all.

Izuna shifts slightly, adjusting Mikako to fit more easily in his arms. Hashirama himself has Tobirama's face resting against the crook of his neck. Neither of them have let go of their siblings since the two had collapsed in the mine. Mikako's brief possession had been terrifying to witness, no matter how benevolent the 'Gelel' she had mumbled about had been. The sheer force of the power must have been beyond that of even a Bijuu; that it had not burned the little Uchiha's body or mind up during its use was a miracle in and of itself.

They both could have lost their siblings right before their eyes. Neither of them even bother trying to sleep after such a perilous episode.

\-----

Tobirama wakes with the dawn, a steady thrum of sorrow and the vague notion of a paradise lost clouding his mind. The body he's resting on moves and he finds himself staring blankly at his brother's wide-eyed face. 

"Tobi..."

"...Good morning." He closes his eyes with a yawn, face scrunching up in irritation as he tries to shake the remnants of sleep from him mind. Waking up in Hashirama's hold wasn't all that unusual on this trip; having his brother's overpowering chakra near him helped keep the nightmares at bay.

The events of the night before come back to him and he cranes his neck to see Mikako in her brother's lap, also just beginning to stir. 

"Hey, Senju." The Uchiha sounds oddly hesitant, stumbling over his words as Tobirama meet Izuna's eyes and don't flinch away. The world feels dull and his thoughts are sluggish in his mind. He wonders if such a feeling is a result of using the Gelel. Perhaps he's in some form of shock? The power Mikako had been channeling had been massive; he could feel it slamming through his chakra senses before he'd lost physical consciousness. His mind had been dragged along the soulbond, tethered to his closest friend and confidant as she had used the entity's abilities. 

It had been indescribable. Gelel was safety and light and love. It was the song of stars flowing through his soul and the knowledge of a thousand worlds pouring into his head. It was an ocean as vast as existence itself and he a mere droplet of water, fully belonging in its embrace.

He would have gladly sunk into that gentle power had it not been for the bond to his soulmate. She had felt it, too. The sense of peace and limitless joy.

And she had let it go.

"What the fuck, Senju?!" Izuna's startled voice draws him from his memories. Hashirama quickly pulls him to face his brother again, searching for what had shocked the Uchiha.

"Tobi? Tobirama, why are you crying? Are you hurt?!" His brother is running a diagnostic jutsu over him, frantically searching for a wound that doesn't exist. The effort it takes to speak is astonishing.

"No, I'm not hurt. I just..." He can't find the words, frustration mars his features.

"We were stars." Mikako is awake and being fussed over by her own brother, who keeps glancing Tobirama's way. He nods, finding the description to be more accurate than what he was coming up with. They would need to explain their experiences later, though.

"There is a small band of shinobi approaching the area, likely to investigate the disturbance of last night." Hashirama frowns at the deflection, but ignoring the warning would be beyond foolish. The older man tries to set Tobirama down out of habit so that he can get up.  
There is a brief flare of mischief in Tobirama's chest as he grabs his brother's shoulders and uses his surprised body to hoist himself up.

He stands.

\-----

Mikako shamelessly holds both Izuna's and Tobirama's hands as they watch Hashirama bullshit the Sand ninja, chipping in when appropriate.

It was amazing, really. The man had spent nearly twenty minutes in tears after Tobirama had stood for the first time in over a year and now he was ruthlessly bulldozing through the questions from a dozen high-class ninja. It was only a matter of time before they would find themselves accepting the Garden of Life from Death as a gift from Konoha, to celebrate the founding of the Sand Hidden Village and to show Konoha's sincere desire to form a mutually-beneficial partnership with her neighbors.

Even Izuna is looking at the Senju clan head with something like respect. Maybe that's not too surprising, though. Her brother has always been impressed with those who can manipulate others and Hashirama is certainly showing off some unexpected flair for it.

One of the lead ninja, a rugged-looking kunoichi with a large summoning scroll on her back, keeps trying to steer the conversation towards the obviously no-longer-crippled Tobirama. His disability had not been kept secret, after all, and such news had gone through the ninja gossip circles like fire through chaff.

Mikako decides to take that one. It would do well to nip any conspiracies in the bud right away.

"It's because of our soulbond!" She chirps happily, swinging their interlocked hands childishly. ' _Time to turn the cute up to eleven_ '. "Hurts don't just go through the bond, healing does too! So we were thinking that when Hashi-nii makes the Garden, he could also use all that chakra to try to heal _my_ legs instead of Tobi-nii's, so that what doesn't need healing goes through the bond! And it _worked!_ "

She smiles beatifically at the group of ninja all trying to decipher the childish explanation. Several of them were shooting startled looks at Hashirama, who had apparently grown an entire garden in the desert and created a new medical miracle at the same time, and _still_ has the energy and chakra to register as a serious potential threat.

He smiles with equal integrity and assures them that her words were absolutely true.

It takes another half-hour before they can excuse themselves, politely declining the invitation to 'visit' the Sand Village by mentioning how Madara had insisted on a brief trip and if they tarry he might seek them out just to make sure that no harm had come to his little sister.  
They'd almost been shooed away after that; Mikako held in her snickers with dignity.

For once, Izuna doesn't sulk when she talks to Tobirama, eventually convincing him to give her a piggy-back ride. He was determined to return to Konoha alongside Hashirama and Izuna, on his own two feet.

She smiles against his back, their chakra sharing their triumphant exhilaration as the group begins the journey home.

\-----

A messenger hawk circles the area that was once desert, thoroughly confused. The land was strange, too changed for even the trained bird of prey to recognize. The creature continues to search for his destination for hours, until he gives up and wings back to Konoha, message undelivered.


	24. The End

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> In which there is an end.

\-----

Mikako's piggy-back ride doesn't last long. Even after Gelel's healing and the physical therapy he'd kept up with, Tobirama's legs were still weakened by the year of infirmity. He was able to keep up with Hashirama and Izuna for an hour's run, but had quickly discovered his current limits were much, much lower than what he had previously been capable of. Still, he refused Hashirama's offer to carry him again, though he did accept the mokuton-grown staff, as it could double as a walking stick and a weapon.

He hardly even minds the amount of breaks he needs to take to rest himself. _He can walk_. He's _never_ going to be limited to that damned chair again. This current weakness is negligible and will be easily overcome with time and training. He is _free_ in a way he'd never appreciated before his captivity.

Tobirama doesn't care that his former battlefield nemesis is staring at him and occasionally checking for genjutsu; he could not wipe the outright grin from his face even if he had wanted to. Really, it's no wonder that Hashirama is so prone to smiling if this is even slightly how the older man feels on a daily basis.

He is moving under his own power again and the joy of it is incredible.

\-----

Hashirama hasn't seen his brother this happy and excited since Itama and Kawarama were born. Even then, Tobirama had kept his emotions carefully hidden, doling out his smiles and laughter only when the adults (or rather, their father) weren't around.

He loves Tobirama's smile, both for its rarity and for its resemblance to their mother's own delighted expressions. Most people who had met Naoki Senju would look askance at him for such a claim, and Hashirama can understand why. At first glance, the pale child with his white hair and red eyes would appear almost comically at odds with his dusky mother, but really, that was a trick of his brother's albinism. All of Hashirama's little brothers had inherited her coarse, wild hair, but only Tobirama had also gained her thin eyes and her absolutely _adorable_ smile.

Really, the only downside to this situation...

Hashirama's eyes dart over to Izuna. He really didn't have a good opinion of Madara's little brother and it's not just because Izuna had been Tobirama's rival; the man was just constantly caustic and skeptical. Hashirama knows he doesn't have much right to call someone out on ignoring reality, but while he dreamed of peace between clans and then worked to make it true, Izuna completely ignored whatever facts he didn't like and acted as if his actions had had no consequence. 

The Uchiha hadn't been nearly as subtle as he thought he'd been, constantly watching Tobirama during their journey. Hashirama is forever relieved that the man under the scrutiny had been too distracted by his own traveling issues to register the inappropriate level of focus. He would likely have let his pain and anger fall over Izuna's head and Hashirama knows the resulting spectacle would only drive Tobirama further into his own head.

Tobirama laughs at something Mikako says and Izuna's sharingan snaps to life. Hashirama gets in the way with a grin, slinging his arm around the surprised Uchiha's shoulders.

"Izuna! What do you think about the new restaurants that have been popping up, lately? Konoha is getting so many immigrants with so many different palates, it's quite the adventure going out to eat, nowadays! I'm thinking of taking Mito to that newest one, the one run by that Teruteru fellow. Have you been there?"

He keeps chatting, trying desperately to avoid breaking down in laughter at the incredulous expression on the young man's face. That would really give the game up, wouldn't it? Too bad for Izuna, Hashirama's been playing this one for far too long to be tripped up now.

\-----

' _Everything had been going well until the Daimyo of Fire Country arrived_ ' Madara thinks wistfully before amending that statement. The arrival of Fire Temple's representatives were _really_ when the trouble had begun. What had once been a simple family's request to live in Konoha had escalated into a war of legality, religious practices, and an entire new subject to delineate. 

And all for _summons_.

Really, if he hadn't discovered a friend in the widowed Onigawara family head, Madara would probably have sent them all away at the first hint of this debacle. But no, the man had been sarcastic and stiff-necked and unbelievably protective of his family and the Uchiha couldn't bring himself to turn his back on someone like Tayuharu.

So now he finds himself standing in a training ground with the weight of lives and legislation on his shoulders as he proves to the assembled monks, lawmakers, Daimyo, and various retainers that the Rage Ogres could understand and respond to rudimentary instructions from people outside the Onigawara family. Each Ogre had needed a different way to communicate due to their natures and most ninja were of the opinion that the overcoming of their conditions proved that they were intelligent enough to be registered and accepted as Konoha summons. Their sentience had been proven as well.

And now everything rests on showing that the Ogres summoned to the Onigawara family are not of the same breed of demons that the Temple has to worry about. Mito and Tayuharu are discussing that now, pointing out differing characteristics while Madara talks the Ogres into acquiescing to a number of requests. The whole picture was likely helped the most by the judicious application of children. Three of the older kids from the summoning family were easily clambering up and down the surprisingly tolerant behemoths. That Tsunarama had somehow befriended and joined them in this escapade shouldn't really have surprised Madara.

Tayuharu catches his eye and Madara can feel a smirk tugging at his lips. The Daimyo is making increasingly positive statements regarding the small family and the proud relief coming from the stout redhead is engaging. 

It is almost enough to distract him from the likelihood that the Daimyo will be appointing a Hokage before he returns to his court at the Capital. 

\-----

Later that day, Mito and Madara read over an official letter of thanks from the newly-established Sand Village that had accompanied a positive answer regarding the offer of alliance between their nations.

It had included a note of congratulations to Hashirama for the success of his new medical technique and the Kazekage's personal well wishes for Tobirama's continued health.

Mito had hugged him and cried with joy when Madara explained to her what Mikako's plan had been and what the note was implying.

(He might have panicked and promised her anything to make her stop.)

(That night he stayed for dinner at Hashirama's house and read to a cheerful Tsunarama as the boy's _deceitful witch_ of a mother styles Madara's hair into a series of tightly braided rows that she swears is popular in Lightning Country.)

\-----

Nearly a week after they had left the Garden of Life from Death, the four travelers return to Konoha. Izuna finds that the sight of the fledgling village's gate isn't nearly as irksome as he had thought it would be. It doesn't bring him the same sense of ' _home_ ' that the old Uchiha compound's gate had brought him, but...there is a sort of peace to it. One that might grow, if he let it.

He still isn't sure about it. About the village. About his clan's place in this new world. About his _own_ place in a world so different from the one he had grown up in. 

Mikako is laughing though, and maybe that could be the reason he will try to find a reason to stay in this strange place. This world of peace, this work-in-progress that represents Madara's dreams...it could be Mikako's world. Some place safer than the violent and bloody fields that Izuna had grown up in.

There are figures waiting for them at the gate. The smallest one bolts from his mother's side as soon as they come into sight, though the woman is not far behind. Hashirama runs ahead to meet them, sweeping his wife and child into his arms and spinning them around with a laugh.

"You survived the trip? That's a pity." Touka drifts past him with an arch of an eyebrow before focusing their attention on Tobirama. "Yes, looks like you'll need to cancel the celebration." He smirks at their back before turning to where Madara has joined them, having apparently given up on waiting decorously for the party to reach him.

His brother looks between him and the Senju currently fussing over their cousin, eyes wide in mock surprise. Izuna punches his arm before Mikako's laughter draws too much attention. _Home_ feels much closer now.

\-----

"Ah? Big brother, what's that band you're wearing?" Everyone had retreated to the Senju Head's house once Mito had gotten a better look at the independently mobile Tobirama and had promptly burst into tears. The sight of him had caused quite a bit of commotion and Hashirama had had to stop often to assure inquiring villagers that an announcement would be coming in the next few days.  
Several people called out words of congratulations and encouragement. She had snickered at how confused and embarrassed her soulmate had seemed to be. With him isolating himself as he had been, it is really no wonder that he had not known how much support he had in the village.

But now her families are joined in the living room area of the house and Mikako has noticed the black cloth band pinned around Madara's left arm. He makes a small hum, as if only just remembering that it was there, and turns it to better show the red embroidery to the assembled group. Mito is smiling and Mikako is suddenly very concerned.

Hashirama peers closely at it. "Shadow? I don't get it; what's that supposed to mean?" Madara rolls his eyes and fishes another band from his pocket, tossing it in his friend's face. Spluttering and grumbling about rude jerks, Hashirama holds it out to get a good look at the red cloth.

Mikako gasps when she sees the kanji for 'Fire' embroidered in black thread, a perfect contrast to the one around her brother's arm.

Her mind spins as Madara begins to grin. ' _It **can't** be! I haven't changed **that** much, have I?!_ '

"The Daimyo visited while you were away. I'll need to catch you up on most of what happened, but..." There's a softness to his face as he meets Hashirama's eyes, understanding dawning. He continues with a fondness rarely shown. "We said we'd run our village together, didn't we?"

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So much thanks for all the love and support this has gotten! I plan on playing in this world further, but right now the story has come to a hopefully happy end!
> 
> \-----  
> A fun fact for the end! 
> 
> Why does Kawauso call Tobirama 'Darling'?  
> \-----  
> Naoki calls her into her rooms after Hashirama and Butsuma have left her to rest and shows the summon the infant who was so new that Kawauso can smell the blood still on him. He is pale and wrinkly, latched determinedly to his mother's breast, drinking greedily. Naoki smiles at him with adoration in her gaze. With such odd features, he was sure to have some difficulty in his life, but she loves every part of him and has faith that he will meet those challenges.
> 
> "Kawauso-chan, I'd like you to meet my darling."


End file.
